02092023 NEWS AND SPORT

HOUSE HALTED BY FNM PROTEST

Speaker suspends business as MPs chant ‘answer the questions’

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE House of Assembly was suspended yesterday morning after a screaming match erupted when Opposition Leader

Michael Pintard chastised the government for avoiding the question and answer period in Parliament.

Shortly after House proceedings began, Mr Pintard questioned government MPs whether

they intended to honour its commitment to allow for question time. However, Obie Wilchcome, who is leader of government business in the House of Assembly, told parliamentarians he had informed Mr Pintard

that the government intended to lay several bills and adjourn proceedings until February 20. He said when they returned on that date, the government would answer questions posed by the opposition.

DECADES IN JAIL FOR KILLERS OF ZNS HOST

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

THE KILLERS of a ZNS broadcaster were yesterday sentenced to decades in jail. Richard Bevans, 34, was sentenced by the Supreme Court to 48 years in prison for the deadly 2016 robbery of Scott Richards, while Raquel Johnson, 36, was sentence to 28 years jail time.

Bevans was represented by attorney Roberto Reckley, and Johnson by attorney Nathan Smith as they appeared before Justice Cheryl GrantThompson for sentencing yesterday. This comes after a jury of nine found both accused guilty on charges of murder and armed robbery in July last year in connection with the death of the 48-year-old broadcaster.

SEE PAGE FIVE

However, Mr Pintard did not accept this explanation yesterday, saying he was assured that Parliament would proceed with question time during Wednesday’s sitting.

SEE PAGE THREE

LIQUIDATORS PROBE $7.7BN IN FTX WITHDRAWALS

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

FTX’s Bahamian liquidators are probing whether $7.7bn was withdrawn from its local subsidiary via “legitimate” transactions as they yesterday revealed virtually all countries are represented in its 2.4m-strong client base.

Brian Simms KC, the Lennox Paton senior partner, and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)

accountants Kevin Cambridge and Peter Greaves, in their first interim report to the Supreme Court said they are having difficulty untangling FTX Digital Markets assets from those owned by clients because of the crypto exchange’s habit of “commingling” funds.

The trio, in particular, said they are examining

whether $5.6bn worth of transactions between FTX Digital Markets and other entities in the group, and a further $2.1bn transferred to related parties, were improper or conducted for legal, appropriate reasons.

And, pointing to the shambles that passed for corporate governance under FTX co-founder, Sam

GOVT MOVES TO 50-50 SPLIT ON TREASURE

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Bankman-Fried, and his close associates, they added that “limited controls” meant they were currently unable to determine how much of the $219.5m cash held in various FTX Digital Markets bank accounts belonged to the Bahamian subsidiary as opposed to its investor clients.

POLICE MAY BE PLACED AT SCHOOL AFTER STABBING

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

AFTER a high school student was stabbed on campus in Abaco this week, Education Minister Glenys Hanna-Martin said she’s asked officials to consider placing police officers at the school where the incident occurred.

Police reported yesterday that a 17-year-old student in Abaco was stabbed by another student of the same age while on the playing field.

A MULTI-MILLION underwater explorer yesterday said it is “still evaluating the economics” after the government moved to double its share from treasure salvaging in Bahamian waters.

David Concannon, Allen Exploration Group’s spokesperson, said it had “ongoing discussions” as the government sought yesterday to move from a 75/25 split between the explorer and the government to 50/50.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

Officers did not name the school where the stabbing took place, but said the incident happened around 10am on Tuesday.

The victim was taken to a local clinic after the incident and was treated and later discharged.

Meanwhile, a 17-year-old student is in custody and assisting police with their investigations.

Commenting on the stabbing yesterday, Mrs Hanna-Martin noted that

SEE PAGE FOUR

GLENYS Hanna Martin yesterday. Photo: Moise Amisial

‘Tell us details on NIB decision’

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

FREE National Movement leader Michael Pintard said he is glad government has made a decision on the National Insurance Board, but “we now need to hear what the details are”.

Mr Pintard made the comments yesterday on a morning radio show. It was confirmed by State Minister Myles Laroda with

responsibility for NIB that the Davis administration had made a decision concerning the future of the NIB fund.

While Mr Laroda said the government will soon announce its decision on whether NIB contribution rates will increase or not, it was reported by The Nassau Guardian that Cabinet had greenlit a rate increase which is believed to take effect on July 1.

When the radio host brought up the rate hike

and the opposition’s position on it, Mr Pintard stated: “We believe that the

government has to have a candid conversation with the population about the

real challenges and lay out what the options are. Are they looking at, for example, increasing the age of retirement or changing it in the opposite direction? This is an important discussion. What are other jurisdictions doing and to what extent are they taking that into consideration?” he asked.

There have been protests in France over President Emmanuel Macron’s government’s plan to increase the retirement age from 62 to 65.

When the French discontent was brought up, the FNM leader noted: “It has to be on the table looking at the age and that’s why you do analysis. That’s why I’m saying it’s important that the government actually have a discussion with the population. The government needs to collect NIB and there are a lot of high profile Bahamians who for years have been serial violators to the tune of hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars. So the arrears are in the millions and so the government ought to talk about how are we going about collecting the arrears.

“That’s very important as a part of this discussion because you’re not going to just simply increase the rates without also reassuring the public who is already challenged in many ways, you’re not going to do that without saying to them we are doing all we can to hold persons accountable to pay and collect the arrears that are already out there.”

He added: “The other thing that is important is the government has to also reassure the public that it will be responsible in how it makes funds available to government ministries, who are often not paying

back on a timely fashion, and if you are making investments, what are you making investments in so that people can be assured you’re not making risky decisions with funds that have to be in place when people need the benefit. So quite frankly, I’m glad they made a decision, because that’s what was important. We now need to hear what the details are.”

He added that many Bahamians benefited from resources from NIB during a very difficult period when persons did not have access to the resources required to feed their family and meet other demands in their lives.

“What you can argue is that when you start talking rate increase, as the government is at the moment, you have to clearly explain to the public what all of those benefits are, and what the new benefits, if any, you are going to introduce and how do you clear away any red tape that prevents persons on a timely basis from accessing those benefits.

“One of the things I talk about often because we see it often during office hours is for women who have not left their marital home, but the husband did … towards the end of his life, he returns home. She takes care of him and he unfortunately passes away, but she can’t access some of the benefits that she is entitled to because somebody has played mischief and say, well, they will not subsisting together or staying together as a couple of something as simple as that multiple persons or women who are unable, they have to verify that he was in the marital home.”

FNM leader Michael Pintard speaking at last night’s FNM meeting.

Photo: Moise Amisial

HOUSE PROCEEDINGS HALTED BY FNM PROTEST

“Madame Speaker, we had missed numerous Wednesdays. We have no idea what will happen on the 20th. We believe that it is inappropriate that we are unable to get the government to live up to its word,” Mr Pintard said.

“We are not prepared to accept what the member has said. Let’s do the people’s work.”

The House of Assembly Rule 39 (2) states that unless the House determines otherwise, the House shall proceed, on the second Wednesday in each month, with the agenda that allows for question time.

However, governing parties have traditionally proceeded with their own agenda, thus not making time for the question period.

The Minnis administration was often criticised for their failure to observe question time when they were in office.

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

PROGRESSIVE Liberal Party chairman and Foreign Affairs Minister Fred Mitchell yesterday berated the opposition for their behaviour in the House of Assembly, saying it was “nothing short of disgraceful”.

“The party is proud of the performance in the House of Assembly of the Speaker Patricia Deveaux today (Wednesday) in the face of the unprovoked, intemperate actions of the Leader of the Opposition and his colleagues today,” Mr Mitchell said in a statement yesterday.

“The performance of the Opposition today (Wednesday) was nothing short of disgraceful, interrupting the people’s business.”

Mr Mitchell’s comments were in response to Wednesday’s heated session, which saw FNM leader Michael Pintard lash out at the government for failing to allow question time in Parliament.

The episode prompted House Speaker Patricia Deveaux to suspend the House for several minutes.

However, when the House resumed, members of the opposition continued their attacks, chanting “answer the questions”. Despite their chants, Speaker Deveaux allowed proceedings to continue and ultimately adjourned the House minutes later.

Yesterday, Mr Mitchell congratulated the House Speaker for allowing the work of the House to continue.

“We can see a con job when it is coming a mile down the road. The great actor Michael Pintard was trying once again for the Academy Awards, but unfortunately for him, the time for nominations was closed,” the minister added.

“He was the only one that didn’t know it. He led his unsuspecting colleagues down the garden path. We keep advising him that the PLP is not his concern, but to look over his shoulder at the missing former Prime Minister Hubert Minnis who was having nothing of this morning’s tomfoolery.”

Minister Mitchell continued: “The PLP is determined to carry on the people’s business: that of the peace and good order in The Bahamas. Congratulations, Madam Speaker. The work of the House carried on despite the phony noise in the market by the FNM members.”

The House of Assembly Rule 39 (2) states that unless the House determines otherwise, the House shall proceed, on the second Wednesday in each month, with the agenda that allows for question time.

However, governing parties have traditionally proceeded with their own agenda, thus not making time for the question period.

Yesterday, Mr Pintard said the Davis administration liked to throw in others face what previous administrations had done, but noted that they appeared to have “one rule” for them and another for everyone else. Mr Wilchcombe again sought to reassure the opposition that they intended to honour its commitment. But Mr Pintard did not let up on his attack and told government MPs: “Why are you wasting our time?”

Some government parliamentarians, such as Fox Hill MP Fred Mitchell, then started shouting across the House floor and yelling “boo” at the opposition who responded. House Speaker Patricia Deveaux was forced to intervene and eventually rose to her feet to try to bring order to the House; however, parliamentarians seated on both sides ignored her and continued to argue.

This prompted Speaker Deveaux to suspend the House for about ten

minutes. She warned: “When I get back, this House better be in order.”

But, when House resumed, members of the opposition continued their attacks, chanting “answer the questions” while standing on their feet.

As their chants rang out, some opposition members banged on the table. Their behaviour did not stop House proceedings as government MPs sought to ignore them and even laid several bills in Parliament.

However, reporters seated in the gallery were unable to hear what was being put on the table because of the loud chants and noises.

Several minutes later, the House was suspended to February 20.

Following yesterday’s heated session, FNM MPs held a press conference outside Parliament to express their displeasure over what had transpired during Wednesday’s sitting.

“We are sick and tired of this government ducking the second Wednesday, but more importantly having given their word, going back on their word,” Mr Pintard said.

“It is required in the procedures in the parliament that we have a second Wednesday where the opposition can ask the questions and they should give a full and complete answer.”

“They have avoided this. Many times, they would say they get back to you and they don’t get back to you, but more importantly, we are not spending the quality time in the Parliament addressing crisis issues that the country face at the moment.”

“They intentionally avoid this particular time.”

FNM deputy leader Shanendon Cartwright echoed similar comments, pledging that the opposition will continue to stand up and speak out on behalf of the Bahamian

people.

“We are telling the government today that we will not go along with this,” he added.

“We will speak up for the Bahamian people. We have an illegal immigration crisis that the government needs to talk about. There are so many issues affecting the Bahamian people and we are going to stand up.”

The FNM has placed more than 30 questions on the House of Assemly’s agenda for the Davis administration to answer.

Some of the questions are related to the rollout of Freedom of Information Act, the affairs of Bahamas Power and Light, projects in the Ministry of Housing, among other things.

The FNM also held a special meeting last night, updating their supporters over what happened. They also continued their criticisms, saying the government has failed to consult with the opposition.

PINTARD SPEAKS OUT OVER DEATH THREATS

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

FREE National Movement leader Michael Pintard yesterday said “we need to repudiate any form of death threats” after threats were made to the Prime Minister on Friday.

The party leader spoke yesterday on the Guardian Radio show Morning Blend when asked about his view on death threats, after two anonymous calls making threats against Prime Minister Philip Davis on Friday. death threa anonymous anonymous calls making death threats against Prime Minister Phillip “Brave” Davis on Friday.

Mr Pintard said: “We are living at a time in The Bahamas where there’s a tremendous amount of anger in homes, in our schools, on our streets. As a result, we’ve had an explosion of violence. so I do not find it uncommon. Listen, when Bahamians hear death threats they don’t react the same way politicians do you know because Bahamians are hearing that on a regular basis for very little reason people are threatening family members, their neighbours. and strangers on the road.”

“We have a national problem and every Bahamian life, inclusive of the chief executive of the country, is important. So all right-thinking Bahamians repudiate the death threats whether it is in Englerston where I grew up, Yellow Elder where I grew up, on a Family Island, or a gatekeeper who is a policymaker. So we should, we should repudiate it.

“What we should also be

careful of is, is not to be untruthful in so many things that we say that a cynicism emerges in the public where they begin to wonder if you’re telling a truth, an untruth about any threats that may have been leveled against you, particularly since most of us who have led political organisations have received death threats. I mean, certainly all of the leaders that I have spoken to or aware of secondhand have received death threats. So persons are cynical, they are saying, you know, sometimes people raise issues, even if it occurred at a level in order to switch the conversation that’s a part of what is being discussed by a public.”

This is a slightly different tone from former Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis who said the Prime Minister’s reaction to recent death threats was “overkill” but also highlighting it is

not uncommon for a Prime Minister to receive such threats.

When the radio host asked a question of Mr Pintard, the FNM leader clarified: “I’m making a point about where our people are at. That there is a cynicism in the public that people believe the critical issues that affect us that when a government is being called into account, it finds creative ways to switch the conversation and the

reason that has currency in the minds of some Bahamians, because it’s done quite often using other mechanisms.”

He repeated the point of repudiating death threats but pointed the finger at behaviour of some public figures who he felt had used some inciting language.

Mr Pintard stated: “We need to repudiate any form of death threats. Even when people report that they have been threatened, we

have to do the investigation. One can always ask whether it is prudent if you are following some significant leads to then talk a great deal about it in the public domain as opposed to making progress on the investigation but that’s a separate issue. Let’s repudiate it but let’s create an environment where all Bahamians appreciate the value of life, that they communicate with each other with civility.”

Seemingly referring to PLP chairman Fred Mitchell, he said: “The chairman talks about the manner in which people are behaving and speaking violently, which he rightly should talk about, but I on my feet in the House of Assembly chastised him and a member on our side when they when they use figurative, I gave them the benefit of the doubt to say they must have meant figurative, terms that were quite angry and violent.

“You cannot give advice about civility in speech and the enforcement of the law around incitement when you yourself in voice notes have talked about taking physical action, which some people say may or may not have been figurative and so we have to we have to be very, very careful in this regard.”

MITCHELL: FNM BEHAVIOUR DISGRACEFUL

THE SCENE in Parliament yesterday as the FNM protested.

FNM leader Michael Pintard speaking at last night’s FNM meeting.

Photo: Moise Amisial

Police may be placed at school after stabbing

violence is an ongoing issue in the country, which, she said, is now “spilling” into school campuses.

She also expressed concern about the incident in Abaco and added that officials are now reviewing it to see how they can strengthen campus safety there.

“We’ve put police officers, specialised trained officers on the campuses,” she said.

“Now, I was advised yesterday, there is not one on that particular campus and so I’ve asked them to review that, and revisit that but these police officers do more than just police the campus.”

“They engage in

mentorship, they do lectures on anger management, etc. It appears to be from what we’re seeing a very useful programme and statistics are showing a decline in incidents and on those campuses where those officers are.”

“And as I’ve indicated, they’re specialised, they’re not just police officers and so we have to keep an eye on it, we got to keep out until we are able to ensure that we stabilise campuses.”

She noted that parents also have a role to play.

“We need all handson-deck,” the minister continued. “But we’re doing all that we can to ensure that the campuses are as safe as they are, but it requires collaborative

efforts and we’re now reviewing that particular school in Abaco.”

“Abaco has added complications, which include Dorian. The schools were closed for three years. There’s trauma that’s been associated with that and so there are a lot of issues. It’s not an easy road, but we are doing all that we can to confront the issue.”

The incident comes as concerns continue about teacher shortages on the island, particularly at government schools.

Teachers there have also complained that a lack of staff has made it difficult for them to closely monitor the students.

Yesterday, Mrs HannaMartin acknowledged concerns about staff

shortages and admitted that the ministry is challenged in finding specialty teachers to go to various schools.

“But we’re working with that,” the minister added, “and we’re now talking about expanding our scope in the recruitment of teachers and so those issues are

being addressed … but wherever we know there is any form of deficit, we have sought to fill them through the virtual school which is not ideal … but it’s a stop gap measure while we ensure that we get teachers there.”

“The other problem is

the processing of teachers through the bureaucracy and it’s proven to be very challenging and that is an area - we discussed it yesterday – that’s under reform. That’s a major issue in the efficiency in meeting the demands of the education.”

JUNIOR JUNKANOO BACK ON BAY STREET TODAY

By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net

JUNIOR Junkanoo finally makes its return to Bay Street today - with Youth, Sports and Culture Minister Mario Bowleg yesterday confident over preparations for the event.

The Junior Junkanoo parade will be held at 6pm today on Bay Street after a more than two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A total of 12-13 schools are expected to participate in the parade, according to Mr Bowleg.

Mr Bowleg told reporters the number of schools participating was smaller than hoped, but said preparations for the parade were going well.

“Preparations are going pretty well. I think things are going to start on time at 6pm. We (are) happy to know that we got a little increase in the schools that will be participating, not as much as we would have

wanted. But again, we know after the two years hiatus some of the principals are more focused on the kids getting back in the classroom.”

He added: “So we understand that, but we’re going to move forward and we hope that we have a wonderful parade and then next year we’ll continue to increase it for what we want it to be.”

Chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings on Tuesday said security measures will be in place for Junior Junkanoo to ensure safety

for those attending. “The same safety precautions that the Royal Bahamas Police Force and the members of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force that we had in place for the Boxing Day Parade and the New Year’s parade, those same security measures are going to be in place for the Junior Junkanoo parade.”

“And so family members can feel comfortable, they can feel safe to know that they can come to Junior Junkanoo with their family, knowing full well that there will be adequate security in place,” CSP Skippings said. She warned persons who have “criminal intent” that

violence will not be tolerated at the parade.

In terms of road closures, CSP Skippings said at 4.30pm today road closures will commence, adding motorists should start making plans for alternate routes.

“Persons travelling east along Bay Street, you will be diverted onto Frederick Street South.”

She explained motorists will be diverted in order for them to enter the eastern parts of New Providence.

“So, what we’re asking persons to do now, realising that Junior Junkanoo is coming up we’re asking you to start making plans now

for your alternate routes. If you don’t have to be in that area around that time commencing at 4.30pm then do not come,” she added.

In December, Mr Bowleg officially launched the start of the 2022/23 Junkanoo season after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID19 pandemic. He said the ministry has expended over $2m in resources to ensure the effective delivery of Junkanoo parades around the country.

“The National Junkanoo Committee has assisted us in ensuring the Family Islands’ groups are back on stream and the Junkanoo Corporation of New Providence has worked faithfully to ensure that the groups here in New Providence are present for this inaugural Junkanoo parade season on the heels of the COVID pandemic,” Mr Bowleg said at a press conference at his ministry. The initial date for Junior Junkanoo in New Providence was scheduled for January 26.

EDUCATION Minister Glenys Hanna Martin yesterday.

Photo: Moise Amisial

Decades in jail for killers of ZNS host

from page one

According to police reports, on May 26, 2016, at Bonefish Pond National Park, authorities discovered Richards’ lifeless body with multiple gunshot wounds.

In her summary of the case, Justice Grant-Thompson said a further search of the crime scene found the victim’s car as well as condoms and a female skirt in the general vicinity.

Justice Grant-Thompson went on to recap how throughout the trial Johnson maintained her innocence in the matter, further stating that Johnson claimed to be in a sexual relationship with the deceased.

In Johnson’s testimony, she said she and the victim had become intimate at the scene when a man in white, armed with a handgun, robbed Richards of his cellphone and money. Johnson claimed she managed to flee the scene in a state of undress when she heard a gunshot and saw the victim collapse on the ground in a pool of blood.

It is said she then managed to catch a bus home only to be arrested days later for her connection to the event, having failed to alert the police to the killing in that time.

During their trial, both accused provided conflicting reports of the incident, but both maintained that neither of them knew the other before being charged.

Justice Grant-Thompson called the crime a “heinous” act and a “cold-blooded” murder, saying that “Mr Scott Richards was robbed, shot and left to die on the ground, like an animal”.

She further stated that the events sullied the picturesque venue.

Although she said Ms Johnson did express sympathy to the victim’s family, Grant-Thomson told the accused that neither had expressed remorse for their involvement in the crime.

In her review of the case, Justice Grant-Thompson found that Bevans was not of good character and incapable of reform, referring to the fact that this is not his first conviction for armed robbery. She also said Bevans is currently serving a prison term on a separate armed robbery charge.

Furthermore, a report from Bevans’ probation officer submitted to court said the convict admitted to the separate murder of a pastor at an ATM to his mother and father.

However, Justice GrantThompson stated this anecdotal confession had

no bearing on her current ruling.

With reference to Ms Johnson Justice GrantThompson believed she was capable of reform, but maintained that she found the crime “abhorrent”.

Before carrying out sentencing, Justice GrantThompson said she wanted to send a message to society that such reprehensible behaviour is “unacceptable”.

She sentenced Bevans to 48 years for murder and 25 for armed robbery. Johnson faced a more lenient 28-year sentence for murder and a ten-year sentence for armed robbery.

It was stated that the year and one month that Bevans spent on remand would be deducted from his prison sentence, with a year and a half being deducted from Johnson’s prison term.

SUICIDE OF 57-YEAR-OLD MAN SUSPECTED AT HARBOUR ISLAND

By LETRE SWEETING lsweeting@tribunemedia.net

POLICE are investigating the suspected suicide of a 57-year-old man from Greece that occurred on Tuesday in Harbour Island.

Around 5.30pm on Tuesday, police were notified of the incident involving the 57-year-old Caucasian man. He was later found in his residence, in the Narrows

part of the island, where he was hanging from a balcony, with a rope around his neck, according to initial police reports.

A local doctor reportedly confirmed that the man showed no signs of life.

Police Chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings also confirmed yesterday that an autopsy will have to be performed.

This incident follows

other alleged suicides in the country last year.

Among them was the suicide of Anthony Tilme, who was found with cable wires wrapped around his neck in early September of last year at Kelly Lane.

The month before, police were investigating an incident in August in the Carmichael Road area. Initial information suggested that shortly after 11am a

man in his early 20s was found unresponsive, hanging with a sheet around his neck.

Emergency Medical Services responded and confirmed that there were no signs of life. This came after another alleged suicide occurred in late July 2022 when around 7pm police responded to a report of a man hanging from a property in the area

of Marathon Road, north of Robinson Road.

Emergency Medical Services responded and confirmed that the man showed no signs of life.

Investigations into the latest incident are continuing.

Anyone suffering with thoughts of depression, suicide, or any mental health crisis can visit the Community Counselling

& Assessment Centre (CCAC), the Out-Patient Mental Health Clinic for Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre (SRC) or call (242) 323-3293 for additional assistance.

The Royal Bahamas Police Force has advised that anyone feeling suicidal can contact the Suicide Prevention Hotline at 3222763 or the Bahamas Crisis Centre at 328-0922.

RICHARD BEVANS, above left, and Raquel Johnson, above right, who have both been jailed for the murder of ZNS broadcaster Scott Richards, right.

The Tribune Limited

Questions should be answered - by all governments

THERE was no shortage of drama

– and theatrics – in the House of Assembly yesterday.

At the heart of it was the rule about question time being on the agenda unless the House determines otherwise. This is a much-abused rule over the years, and it is very, very far from the first time yesterday that the government of the day set about proceeding with other business instead of giving time for the Opposition to ask questions.

On this occasion, however, the FNM decided enough was enough and dug their heels in, shouting “answer the questions” repeatedly while the likes of Minister of Foreign Affairs Fred Mitchell shouted “boo” across the chamber.

The Speaker decided enough was enough and adjourned until February 20. The questions remain unanswered, the business the government wanted to proceed with went no further yesterday.

We are quite sure that each political faction will take sides over who was right and who was wrong on the issue, and there will be plenty of finger pointing about what previous administrations did or what previous parties said in Opposition.

However, take a look at the issue of question time itself – and it is very much a tool that, properly used, could improve our governance.

Look across at the Parliament in Britain – from where we draw so many of our Parliamentary traditions – and the regular question time sessions there serve as a good way to hold the government to account, or to demonstrate the strength or otherwise of that government’s would-be challengers.

In recent times, answers given during question time in the UK Parliament exposed Boris Johnson’s shifting explanations for parties during COVID lockdowns, and demonstrated the

weakness in the leadership of his successor, Liz Truss. It equally showed one Opposition leader, Jeremy Corbyn, seemed to lack the ability to hold the government’s feet to the fire, which cost him in election results and saw him lose the leadership.

Such sessions ought to bring the public the answers they need – or show if one or the other side is lacking.

As it is, we treat it like some unwanted scrap of dirt on the agenda to be swept under the political carpet.

Both sides have dismissed the tradition, either to avoid uncomfortable questions or to get on with their own agenda. That latter excuse is not very convincing, however, when on each occasion an MP gets up to speak they often proceed with a long list of thank yous and mentions of constituents rather than getting to the meat and gristle of legislation.

So whether yesterday’s protestations were staged or genuine, and whether government outrage at the behaviour is heartfelt or convenient, the Bahamian people themselves would be better served if we did treat question time with more reverence.

Will this current ruckus bring that about? That seems unlikely – there is too much political point scoring going on for real change out of this particular moment.

But if we lived in a cross-partisan world where sides took a moment to work together on what would raise the standards of public discourse, then forcing the government – any government – to answer questions raised by its opponents is certainly one step to benefit all.

Sadly, notch it up as one more example of how it seems easier to demand transparency when out of power, rather than deliver it once in charge.

Injunction on blood transfusions

EDITOR, The Tribune.

THE NEW York Times has posted a digital version of a June 12, 1977 article regarding the death of one Nathan H. Knorr on the Internet. Unbeknownst to most Bahamians, Knorr was the third president of the US based Watch Tower Bible and Tract Societysucceeding Judge Joseph Rutherford in 1942.

Rutherford would succeed Charles Taze Russell in 1916 or thereabouts. Russell would incorporate Zion’s Watch Tower Tract Society in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1884. He was the Society’s first president. Under the Knorr administration, the Watch Tower would ban blood transfusions in 1945. This earth shattering move was announced in July of 1945 in the Society’s publication, The Watchtower, in an article titled “The Sanctity of Blood.”

Interestingly, the Society had banned vaccinations in 1931 or thereabouts. This was announced in another publication formerly called Golden Age. Golden Age underwent a name change in 1937, when it was renamed Consolation. Consolation was renamed Awake! in 1946. Perhaps owing to pressure from the American government, the Watch Tower would reverse its ban on vaccinations in 1952. In 1967, however, it banned organ transplants, only to reverse this controversial decision in 1980.

Apparently, the Governing Body in New York has no qualms toying with the lives of its members, which today totals over 8.5 million Jehovah’s Witnesses. The name Jehovah’s Witness was adopted in 1931 by the Rutherford administration, in order to distinguish his group from the Dawn Bible Students Association and the Layman’s Home

Missionary Movement. All three groups can rightly be considered theological offsprings of Russell. Knorr may have never visited The Bahamas during his lifetime. Yet it boggles the mind that his decision in 1945 regarding blood transfusions would directly impact Bahamian Jehovah’s Witness families. I will not call names for obvious reasons.

The thing that continues to trouble me regarding this Watch Tower injunction is the tragic and unnecessary loss of a young Bahamian life some years ago. This Bahamian was fatally injured by an assailant. I was told that the victim would’ve survived, had they received a blood transfusion. I am not privy to all of the facts surrounding this case.

However, I can only speculate that the young Jehovah’s Witness probably had a medical alert card in his possession, which notified medical personnel that under no circumstances must blood be given. Or it is quite possible that his Jehovah’s Witness family members informed the hospital about their religious stance on blood transfusions. Whatever the case may be, Knorr and the Watch Tower had twisted the meaning of Leviticus 17:10, 3:17, 17:26-27 and Acts 15:29. None of the passages referenced in the aforementioned 1945 Awake! article has anything to do with blood transfusions. Indeed, the biblical writers knew nothing about this modern medical procedure.

What was banned by the biblical writers was the consumption of blood. It was

common among pagans to consume blood and to practice cannibalism. Hence, the apostles’ prohibition against blood consumption in Acts 15. How many more needless deaths must there be before Bahamian Jehovah’s Witnesses realize that Knorr used faulty hermeneutics to come to his blood transfusion conclusions?

Concerning Knorr, he was not seminary trained. He along with Fredrick W. Franz, Albert D. Schroeder, George D. Gangas and Milton G. Henschel sat on the New World Translation Committee. Only Franz had a college education, and that was only two years. This is something worth considering when Bahamian Jehovah’s Witnesses “skylark” with the lives of their children who are in need of a blood donation. I am not a physician. I am not an expert on medicine. Yet as a layman, I can see a clear distinction between eating blood and receiving it intravenously. I am appealing to officials at the Ministry of Health and Health and Wellness Minister Dr. Michael Darville to reach out to the local Kingdom Halls on New Providence, with the aim of convincing them that there’s nothing immoral about receiving a blood transfusion. Granted, the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society in New York will undoubtedly excommunicate its Bahamian members for failing to abide by its injunction. But I would rather be guilty of breaking a man-made arbitrary injunction than standing idly by while watching another human being die needlessly.

KEVIN EVANS Freeport, Grand Bahama. February 7, 2023.

EDITOR, The Tribune.

GOODMAN’S Bay a public open space guaranteed under Law to remain so BUT are the employees of the opened Wynn Cable Beach Hotel taking over the eastern parking area as theirs?

Construction workers come off their shift around 3.15pm so it could not have been their vehicles which for the duration of the construction took over the parking area designated for swimmers and beach users as

the construction workers had left ...conclude the employees of the new now opened hotel have found this location.

What will happen after Easter and beaching and swimming season restarts again? Those users for which Goodman’s is legally reserved probably will have to seek somewhere else to park and gain access to the beach or find somewhere else...... sorry Wynn Employees not your place.

Physical Planning made a critical mistake yet again...

did the same back when Sandals Royal Bahamian expanded did not insist of the developer to provide employee parking. Can Parks take immediate action and warn the non-authorised users of Goodman’s parking area to stop parking. The west end early in mornings a food truck occupies there and difficult for those exercising or hitting the beach to find a parking spot.

PAULA MINNS Nassau, February 5, 2023

A LITTLE koala sits on a furry teddy bear to be weighed at the zoo in Duisburg, Germany, Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2023. The little bear was born in July last year, but was invisible for the public in its mothers’ pouch. The so far unnamed koala joins the largest koala group in Europe at the breeding and competence center in Duisburg.

Photo: Martin Meissner/AP

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

THE GB Chapter of the University of the Bahamas Alumni Association this week presented board games to the UB North campus, in Freeport.

Aurelia Pinder, chapter president, said one of the goals of the association is to raise funds to outfit the future recreation centre at UB’s new downtown

location.

“The GB Chapter was excited to hear about the future move to a downtown location, and from our own experiences at UB, knew that the key to a great college experience is having a balance between coursework and leisure,” she said.

“Our ultimate goal is to raise enough donations to outfit the future recreation centre, but when we heard Campus Life was looking to purchase

CHAPTER president Aurelia Pinder (fourth from left) and members of the GB Chapter of the UB Alumni Association present board games to Autherine TurnquestHanna, assistant director of campus life at UB North (front left) and students of UB North on Monday.

board games to resume some campus life activities, we just had to step in and help the cause.”

The GB Chapter donated two game tables, Dominoes, Uno, Jenga, Checkers, Cornhole toss, and Connect Four.

Ms Pinder said their goal in the next cycle is to get more board games, and one day when the campus is move-in ready, some larger items such as a pool table, air hockey, and table tennis.

Freeport man charged in 2016 murder case

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A 45-YEAR-OLD Freeport man was charged with murder in the Freeport Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.

Gerad Pinder appeared before Magistrate Laquay Laing in Court Three. He was represented by Paco Deal.

It is alleged that on Saturday, April 6, 2016, the accused intentionally caused the death of Tashard Barr by means of unlawful harm.

Pinder was not required to enter a plea to the murder charge.

Prosecutor Calsey Arthur objected to bail.

The case was adjourned to April 4. In other court news, a 42-year-old male resident of East Grand Bahama was charged with stealing over $14,000 worth of equipment, the property of the Disaster Reconstruction Authority (DRA) in Freeport.

Corey Wallace, of Emmanuel Way, High Rock, appeared before Deputy Chief Magistrate Debbye Ferguson in Court One on two counts of stealing.

It is alleged that on January 4, at Freeport, the accused stole 16 Deka solar batteries valued at $7,200; 75ft of electrical wires valued at $680; eight solar panels values at $3,400; solar light pole valued at $168; 32 solar light posts valued at $480; and other miscellaneous items valued at $172.77, altogether valued $12, 101.09, the property of the DRA.

It also alleged that between January 11 and 17, at Freeport, the accused stole three Deka batteries valued at $1,350; and two solar panels valued $850, altogether valued $2,200, the property of the DRA.

Paco Deal is representing Wallace who pleaded not guilty to the charges and elected summary trial in the magistrate’s court.

The prosecutor did not object to bail, however,

MURDER ACCUSED DENIED BAIL

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A MAN was denied bail for the fourth time in the Supreme Court yesterday as he awaits trial on multiple counts of murder and attempted murder.

Braheem Charlton, 30, represented by attorney Ian Cargill, appeared before Justice Cheryl Grant-Thompson for a decision on his latest bail hearing.

This comes after Charlton was accused of the August 9, 2021, murder of Dino Brown and attempting to cause the death of Dennis Bowles. Brown was killed off Marshall Road.

It is further alleged that on August 14 of that same year while being concerned with others Charlton caused the death of Laneisha Armbrister, a trainee immigration officer. It was during this incident, it is said, he attempted to kill Drazen Dean after he allegedly opened fire on the two at an intersection in Victoria Gardens.

Acknowledging that Charlton had earlier made three failed bail applications, the Justice ruled the accused posed a high flight risk. As such, Charlton was once more denied bail and remanded to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. His trial is set to begin over the summer.

BAIL GRANTED IN FIREARM CASE

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A MAN was granted $8,000 bail in court on Wednesday accused of being found by police with a loaded gun in the nation’s capital earlier this week.

Yvon Carter, 22, faced Magistrate Kendra Kelly on charges of possession of an unlicensed firearm and possession of ammunition.

It is alleged that on February 5, officers arrested Carter after he was found with a black Glock

9mm pistol with the serial number erased. At the time of his arrest, it is said that the seized weapon had 11 unfired rounds of 9mm ammunition.

In court, Carter pleaded not guilty to all charges. Bail of $8,000 was granted with one or two sureties. Under the conditions of his bail, the accused is to be fitted with an electronic monitoring device and must abide by a 9pm to 6am residential curfew.

Carter’s trial will begin on March 21.

MAN DENIES HANDGUN ATTACK

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A MAN was denied bail in court yesterday after being accused of assaulting another man with a handgun.

Ricardo Mitchell, 29, went before Senior Magistrate Carolyn Vogt-Evans on a charge of assault with a deadly weapon.

requested that the magistrate impose a condition on the accused to sign in at the nearest Police Station.

Deputy Chief Magistrate Ferguson granted $1,800 cash bail without conditions, and adjourned the case to May 24.

On February 5 in New Providence, Mitchell is accused of assaulting Javan Stubbs with a handgun.

In court, Mitchell pleaded not guilty to the charge. The accused was denied bail at that time and was remanded to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. Mitchell’s trial is expected to start on April 12.

EMANCIPATION AND EDUCATION STILL NEEDED 50 YEARS AFTER INDEPENDENCE

“THE first step in liquidating a people is to erase its memory. Destroy its books, its culture, its history. Then have somebody write new books, manufacture a new culture, invent a new history. Before long that nation will begin to forget what it is and what it was. ... The struggle of man against power is the struggle of memory against forgetting.” – Milan Kundera

At the 50th anniversary of independence there is tremendous work to be done to educate Bahamians about our basic history and basic civics, including the Constitution. Those charged with organising this commemoration have an obligation to ensure that it is not overwhelmingly a parade of festivities and feel-good events.

We should not mostly be engaged in a series of blowout parties. At the heart of this anniversary should be a variety of educational and meaningful cultural activities. This is a golden opportunity for remembrance, recollection and awareness. For example, many Bahamians, especially of a younger generation, do not really understand certain key aspects of the Constitution, the full enumeration of fundamental rights and concomitant responsibilities, certain attributes of parliamentary democracy and a host of other basics of a maturing nationhood.

How can we hold a referendum on certain provisions or discussion of a republic if there is scant basic understanding of the fundamentals of democracy and government? Many take for granted that most Bahamians understand the basics of democratic participation and citizenship more than they do.

Correspondingly, most have a limited grasp of the entrenched legacy of slavery and colonialism, thereby having little ability to appreciate the imperative of emancipating themselves from the servitude and guile of their mental slavery rooted in our past.

A party-filled celebration, absent how it is rooted in the struggle against slavery and colonialism, is an insult to previous generations involved in the struggle. It is a form of romantic denialism. It fails to recognise that the emancipatory struggle continues because many remain cognitively colonised. History and memory can be erased, supplanted, frittered away through indifference, frivolity and intellectual and ethical laziness by those who should

know better. At the core of slavery was the pernicious strategy to indoctrinate the enslaved in their supposed inferiority and the supremacy of their masters.

RACISM

At a social event, three professional women, all over 60, lamented the racism within the British Royal Family and the alleged treatment of Meghan Markle by some in the Family and the British media. There was debate as to whether Prince Harry should have published his book, Spare.

Pressed as to whether we should become a republic, given this racism, the strong response was, “No, we need the British monarchy!” Further pressed: “But you just said many of them seem to be racist.” There was no response. The women went silent.

The eventual transition to a republic is a distant horizon because there is considerable education to be done. Most of us do not like change because “we know what we know” and we are mostly ignorant, happily so, of the vast amount of what we do not know or do not care to know.

watching scores of black Bahamians fawning over him and waving our national flag?

Those who were born before independence are among those most frightened by change, in part because they still lack a deeper sense of nationhood and never truly assimilated many of the ambitions and the scope of the meaning and promise of independence.

Many of us remain intellectually and emotionally colonised. The colonial and slave system were designed to keep the colonised as a permanent underclass, with enough subsistence to survive but never sufficient to thrive or develop.

Many of our people are still of this mindset and place for various reasons, including the desire by some in the political directorate to maintain a clientelist state in which the masses are dependent, uninterested or unable to rise.

What are among the best ways to promote new ways of thinking and being? Education for transformation may be rooted in emancipation stories, cultural activities and the broader historical narrative of struggle and transcendence.

‘Pressed as to whether we should become a republic, given this racism, the strong response was, “No, we need the British monarchy!”

Further pressed: “But you just said many of them seem to be racist.”

There was no response.’

The late Rex Nettleford, Jamaican by birth, but a cosmopolitan son of the region, was a master teacher and creative intellect who utilised the classroom, the media, theatre, songs, music and dance as tools of emancipation. This is the quality of creativity we require to transform and educate Bahamians, including during this Jubilee. Thankfully, some theatre and arts groups are utilising the anniversary as time for celebration and remembrance. There are other creative avenues we might utilise for civic education.

After 50 years of independence, we fear becoming a republic in part because of a startling deficit of self-confidence.

Many will gleefully welcome King Charles who has been invited to the Golden Jubilee celebrations, a half century after he was here for the 1973 celebrations. In distressing ways, we have made no progress. Will the King be embarrassed

By example, how might we use the Preamble to the Constitution to educate and inform Bahamians about our national longings and struggle. The Preamble recalls a part of our story cum journey and the principles on which a sovereign Bahamas was founded.

Imagine a video presentation for social and broadcast media on the Preamble. But first, a historical aside. The uscourts. gov website notes: “The

preamble sets the stage for the [US] Constitution… It clearly communicates the intentions of the framers and the purpose of the document. The preamble is an introduction to the highest law of the land; it is not the law. It does not define government powers or individual rights.”

JUSTICE

The framers drafted the 52-word paragraph in six weeks in 1787, including five major principles, with justice as the first: “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

What is some of the history of our Preamble? The original draft was penned by constitutional father Sir Arthur Foulkes.

After the 1968 election and the attainment of majority rule a new 1969 constitution gave the local government more responsibility for internal affairs and security, among other changes. The title of premier was changed to prime minister.

The British informed the new government that a preamble could not be used

until independence. Sir Arthur’s draft was amended with several changes for the Independence Constitution. The original draft did not include the reference to “Christian values”.

Some religious ministers wanted the wording: “Christian nation”. Sir Lynden Pindling balked. The word “values” was used as a compromise, according to Sir Arthur.

Sir Lynden and others realised that the word “nation” would be too restrictive and not in keeping with the commitment to pluralism and freedom of religion. They understood the importance of the country being seen as a democracy and not a theocracy.

DISESTABLISHED

Approximately 100 years earlier in 1869, the Anglican Church was disestablished as the “state church” through the Disestablishment Act (Statute Laws of The Bahamas). Sir Arthur notes that the state used to pay the salaries of Anglican clerics. Other denominations opposed this state favoritism and demanded the change.

It is important to know this history, especially in the face of the theocratic, denominational and religious conceits and imperiousness of some Christian denominations.

Applications for the public service included questions about one’s religion and the religion of one’s parents. What these questions meant was denomination but the two were conflated.

Constitutional expert

Sean McWeeney, KC, chaired a constitutional commission which released a 246-page report in 2013. As noted in the Prologue, the Commission “engage[d] in nation-wide public consultation and a ‘structured dialogue’ with the general public on matters of constitutional reform.”

In a recent Nassau Guardian article Mr McWeeney argued: “I’ve heard it said by a number of people that the Constitution is fine the way it was conceived and it requires no change, which is demonstrably untrue in any number of respects…

“The good thing about the Commission’s report is that it’s so comprehensive and so deeply considered that it’s really a blueprint for constitutional change that has long legs, and I think it’s going to be a template that future governments can use for quite some time.”

Many concur with these and other suggestions by Mr McWeeney, more of which next week. Such reform should be accompanied by public education to help Bahamians to better understand the workings of our democracy and their role as citizens.

Democracy survives and flourishes when a critical mass or a core of citizens preserve democratic memory over amnesia and ignorance. Democracy suffocates and teeters when such memory is depreciated or left unnurtured, especially by the governing class and political and other leaders, including in academia, the media and civil society.

• More next week.

Construction under way on Fort Charlotte straw market

By LETRE SWEETING lsweeting@tribunemedia.net

CONSTRUCTION

has started on the new straw market at Fort Charlotte, with the redevelopment of Fort Fincastle Straw Market also being prepared in time for the country’s 50th independence celebrations this year. South Beach MP Bacchus Rolle, parliamentary secretary for Public Works and Utilities, in his contribution to the parliamentary debate on The Fiscal Strategy Report 2022 in the House of Assembly on Monday afternoon, spoke about the progress made for several initiatives affecting infrastructure for the development of the

family islands and New Providence.

“Nothing gives me greater pleasure than to be able to announce that we have begun already the actual construction of a new straw market at Fort Charlotte, which will be supplementary to the main straw market on Bay Street,” he said.

“It will be one of the satellite straw markets (for) which we already have facilities in Paradise Island, Fort Fincastle and, of course, on Cable Beach,” Mr Rolle said.

“At Fort Fincastle, a redevelopment of this straw market is a part of the upgrade in the Fort Fincastle area in time for the 50th anniversary celebrations,” he said.

As visitor arrivals to

The Bahamas exceeded seven million last year and are expected to be even higher this year, according to Chester Cooper, Minister of Tourism, Aviation and Investments last week, Mr Rolle added:

“This is in keeping with the government’s (plan) for visitor arrivals to New Providence, which will provide a direct impact to the vendors and straw business persons and, of course, a livelihood for straw vendors.”

Mr Rolle also mentioned plans that the Water and Sewerage Corporation has to better “supply of safe, reliable and continuous water” to the Family Islands, “namely those in Abaco and Eleuthera” as well as projects planned for New Providence.

RESIDENTS WELCOME MOVE TO IMPROVE STREET LIGHTS

By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net

FRANKLIN McMinns, a resident of Bain Town, says he feels safer as a result of The Royal Bahamas Police Force’s partnership with Bahamas Power & Light that aims to improve streetlights throughout the community to combat crime.

The objective of the initiative is to change, improve, and restore streetlights throughout the capital, especially in “hotspot” areas in terms of violence.

“I’m very happy to see that y’all bringing in BPL to improve some more lighting in the area,” McMinns told reporters during a police tour of communities that received light fixtures.

Chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings spoke to reporters on Tuesday during the tour. She said over the past months RBDF partnered with BPL, and Walker’s Industries Limited to provide improved lighting in New Providence. Since the initiative started, CSP Skippings revealed that there has been a reduction in crime.

“Due to the lighting that is now in place. It has significantly impacted crime and the reduction of crime.

Because of the lighting, criminals can no longer hide in those dark places where they usually would hide,” she said.

Chief Superintendent

Anthony Rolle added that 95 percent of the streetlights have been changed in New Providence, saying it has benefited in the fight against crime.

CSP Rolle said: “Wherever there’s a streetlight in New Providence, we look to change them out. Either there are poles that have lights that are malfunctional or not working at all. And there are areas where there’s no light at all. So, they are looking to change them out. At present they have changed up to 95 percent of the island of New Providence, and I think they seek to go to the Family Island as well.”

For his part, Keno Wong, chairman of The Bahamas National Neighborhood Watch Council, said they assisted the police by identifying “dark spots” communities in need of better streetlights.

“We do realise that safer and better communities must be lit in order to combat the crime that we have in our country. And ever since this initiative has taken place, we have noticed the reducing crime in certain communities,” Mr Wong said.

He added: “The Bahamas National Neighborhood Watch council was truly enlightened, to be a part, to really tell the police where these dark spots are so that we can have better lighting for our communities.”

A worker of Walker’s Industries Limited also shared gratitude to be a part of the initiative.

POLICE SEEK TO IDENTIFY VICTIM

POLICE are seeking help in identifying the man shot and killed on Sunday at the South Beach ramp.

The man is light skinned, believed to be in his early twenties and was wearing a white T-shirt and black sweat pants. He was killed in the shooting on Baillou Hill Road south at about 9pm.

Police urge anyone who has not seen a loved one or

friend in the past 48 hours to contact the criminal investigations department on 502-9991/2.

• Five people were arrested and 39 cited for traffic violations in New Providence on Sunday during road checks in the areas of Baillou Hill Road, Carmichael Road and Augusta Street. The five arrests were for outstanding warrants.

“From a sewerage standpoint, the Water and Sewerage Corporation is nearing conclusion of a PPP agreement in the range of $1.8m to complete works at Malcolm Park Wastewater Treatment Facility,” Mr Rolle said.

“The Water and Sewerage Corporation is in very active discussions for a PPP (public private partnership) agreement in the range of $8m to complete the work of a longstanding issue to the Gladstone Road Wastewater Treatment Facility,” he said.

Mr Rolle also spoke

about the ministry’s plans for Exuma, Cat Island and South Eleuthera.

A $60m road project is planned in Exuma and included is the provision for waterways in Baraterre, George Town and Little Exuma.

Additionally, the ministry is about to enter into a PPP for the development of roads in Cat Island and South Eleuthera.

The government capital expenditure programme has allocated in the amount of $121.4m to the Ministry of Works and Utilities and its entities in pursuance of

providing sustainability and adequate level of infrastructure for the development of the Bahamian people, wherever they reside throughout this Bahamas, Mr Rolle said. He said the Davis Administration “met a dire situation with respect to public infrastructure” when they came into power in 2021, and so the $121.4m in funds is then allocated for “items ranging from water infrastructure, maintenance of public buildings, roads, bridges, drains, beautification and maintenance of public spaces”.

The initiative which started in November is ongoing as the partnership aims to provide and enhance streetlights throughout New Providence.

During the police drive along areas such as Bain Town, The Grove, and Yellow Elder had improvements in its streetlights.

POLICE press liason Chrislyn Skippings alongside Keno Wong, chairman of the Bahamas National Neighbourhood Watch Council, on Tuesday.

Photo: Austin Fernander

Clinic marks anniversary

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

LUCAYAN’S Family Care and Concierge Ltd has reached its one-year milestone as a family medicine clinic in Freeport.

Dr Tiadra Dorsett Johnson said the public has welcomed them in the community, and they are “hopeful for the future”.

“We thank the public for making us their home clinic,” she said as they celebrated their first-year anniversary at the Lucaya Shopping Plaza.

“We love the location, and we have grown 100 percent,” said Dr Johnson.

“We do not want to be a statistic in GB where a lot of persons are looking at the economy and the financial situation and getting depressed. There are some businesses out there trying to meet the needs in the community, and we are very hopeful for the future and our sustainability,” she said.

The clinic has several

family doctors on staff, including Dr Johnson, Dr Thompson-Major, Dr Robinson, Dr King-Strachan, and Dr Hutcheson, as well as a nursing staff. They provide care for the whole family from infant

to adult care, and geriatric care.

Dr Johnson encourages everyone to get a check-up. She said people can walk in for a blood pressure check.

“Many of the chronic diseases we are dying from

such as hypertension, heart disease, stroke, and a lot of the cancers, are due to underlying risk factors of obesity,” she stressed. She said our lifestyles may contribute towards these illnesses, which can

be corrected if discovered early.

“So, finding out early, we can make steps to correct it and/or prevent it. It is best to find out things early so we can treat it or address that issue early. So do not be afraid to get a checkup because most things are preventable and can be cured.”

Dr Johnson said they encourage the whole family to come in together to get a check-up at one time.

In addition to clinic appointments, she said they also provide concierge care, which includes house calls.

“We go to the home and if there are persons disabled, bed-ridden, elderly, or have severe acute sickness like dehydration and pain we will put up a drip to give pain medicine, we do Covid testing, and start some evaluation to get them up and running,” she explained.

Dr Johnson said they provide urgent care, not emergency care.

“Emergency care is only available at the hospital. So, if there is an emergency like

ongoing chest pains, heart attacks, strokes, they would be referred to the hospital,” she said.

“We do some urgent care. For example, if someone comes in with pain and dehydration sickness, we can assist, and if there is a sprain, we can wrap up the ankle.

“But we do not have an X-ray. If there are broken bones, we outsource that and still coordinate casting with a technician outside of hospital. We do coordinate care with all the other specialists and clinics on the island,” Dr Johnson said.

Dr Johnson said the doctors at the clinic are very experienced, with a minimum of 15 years of service.

She said the clinic has two new clienteles. On NHI (National Health Insurance) they have a doctor enrolling for new patients, and they also accept new cash and private patients. They are open weekdays from 8am to 7pm, and on Saturdays from 9am to 3pm.

THE TEAM at Lucayan’s Family Care and Concierge Ltd is celebrating its first anniversary as a family medicine clinic in Freeport.

Days full of noisy gear and digging, then silence in earthquake aftermath

TURKEY Associated Press

THEY lifted slabs of cement with enormous cranes and smashed rubble with jackhammers. Then, they stopped. Silence.

Key to detecting the faintest noise, which could be the sign of a survivor buried beneath rubble from Monday’s quake in Turkey and Syria.

Among the wreckage of a collapsed 14-story building in the Turkish city of Adana, the shriek of a whistle pierced the noise every few minutes on Wednesday. Rescue workers hollered for quiet, and listened for any hint of voices from the debris. Hundreds of people watching hushed.

During one moment of digging, Volunteer Bekir Bicer uncovered a crushed birdcage, he said. Inside was a blue-and-yellow bird, alive after nearly 60 hours.

“I was very happy. I nearly cried,” Bicer said. “The cage was broken, but the bird was still inside.”

Friends and family of the trapped sat beside fires, waiting for a miracle even as the

survival window for those trapped under the rubble was closing.

Suat Yarkan, 50, said his aunt and her two daughters lived in an apartment on the building’s fourth floor. They would have been home asleep when the quake struck. He was desperate for hope that they could be rescued alive.

“Look at the bird. Sixty hours,” he said. “It makes me feel like maybe God

is helping us... I have to believe that they will recover everyone.”

Regular moments of silence are essential to such operations, said David Alexander, professor of emergency planning and management at University College London.

“We often find helicopters chattering overhead, making a huge noise and sometimes also blowing up dust whilst the teams are desperately

trying to listen for any kind of noise that might indicate someone alive and moving under the rubble,” he said.

Sophisticated rescue teams will use microphones to pick up faint noises, while specially trained dogs and fibre-optic cameras pick up heat inside mounds of debris. But given the need to move quickly, and the limited number of rescue teams deployed across a huge area,

cries for help are key.

“If a person can attract attention under the rubble, their chance of being saved is about three times higher than it would be if they’re in a coma, statistically speaking,” Alexander said.

As the sun set Wednesday for the third time on devastated cities and towns in Turkey and Syria, the push to recover survivors became more urgent as the lack of food and water, bitterly cold weather and potential injuries grew even more acute.

Prospects for finding survivors almost three days after the quake are narrow, experts say.

“The first 72 hours are considered to be critical as the condition of people trapped and injured can deteriorate quickly and become fatal if they are not rescued and given medical attention in time,” said Steven Godby, an expert in natural hazards at Nottingham Trent University in England.

In Adana on Wednesday, rescue workers at another collapsed building draped a white sheet across a recess in the mound of debris, obscuring the view of what they’d

discovered there. The digging machines came to a stop, and a stretcher was pulled behind the sheet as the workers looked on in silence.

An ancient city of more than 2 million inhabitants just 20 miles from the Mediterranean Sea, Adana has experienced earthquakes before. A 6.3 magnitude tremor in 1998 killed nearly 150 people in the city and its surroundings, and left thousands homeless.

This week’s stronger quake left a large number of Adana’s buildings, many of them modern, seemingly untouched. Many highrise apartment buildings appeared entirely undamaged. On the city’s northern fringe, however, several 14-story buildings collapsed.

As of Tuesday night, Turkey’s government reported that 167 people had been killed by the earthquake in Adana, with others still trapped beneath the rubble. That was only a tenth of the deaths reported in the devastated Hatay province, miles away.

MH17 INQUIRY: ‘STRONG INDICATIONS’ PUTIN OK’D MISSILE SUPPLY

NETHERLANDS

Associated Press

AN international team of investigators said yesterday it found “strong indications” that Russian President Vladimir Putin approved the supply of heavy anti-aircraft weapons to Ukrainian separatists who shot down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in 2014 with a Russian missile.

However, members of the Joint Investigation Team said they had insufficient evidence to prosecute Putin or any other suspects and they suspended their 8½-year inquiry into the shooting down that killed all 298 people on board the Boeing 777 flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur.

Russia has always denied any involvement in the downing of the flight over eastern Ukraine on July 17, 2014, and refused to cooperate with the international investigation.

Dutch prosecutors said that “there are strong indications that the Russian president decided on supplying” a Buk missile system — the weapon that downed MH17 — to Ukrainian separatists.

“Although we speak of strong indications, the high bar of complete and conclusive evidence is not reached,” Dutch prosecutor Digna van Boetzelaer said, adding that without Russian cooperation, “the investigation has now reached its limit. All leads have been exhausted.”

She also said that, as head of state, Putin would have immunity from prosecution in the Netherlands. The team played a recording of an intercepted phone call in which they said Putin could be heard discussing the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

“Are we disappointed?

No, because we think we came further than we had ever thought in 2014. Would we have liked to come further? Of course, yes,” said Andy Kraag of the Dutch police.

The team informed relatives of those killed in the downing of MH17 of their findings before making them public.

“There was disappointment because ... they wanted to know why MH17 was shot down,” Kraag said. “We’re really clear on what has happened, but the answer to the question why MH17 was shot down still remains in Russia.”

Van Boetzelaer said that while the investigation is being suspended, phone lines will remain open for possible witnesses who may still want to provide evidence. If that happens, the inquiry could be reactivated.

Russian officials say

that a decision to provide rebels with military support over the summer of 2014 was in Putin’s hands.

A decision to supply arms was even postponed for a week “because there is only one who makes a decision (…), the person who is currently at a summit in France,” the investigative team said, citing a phone conversation that was referring to Putin.

Prosecutors said that at the time Putin was at a commemoration of D-Day in France.

The announcement by the investigative team comes nearly three months after a Dutch court convicted two Russians and a Ukrainian rebel for their roles in shooting down the plane. One Russian was acquitted by the court.

None of the suspects appeared for the trial and it was unclear if the three who were found guilty of multiple murders will ever serve their sentences.

The convictions and the court’s finding that the surface-to-air Buk missile came from a Russian

military base were seen as a clear indication that Moscow had a role in the tragedy. Russia has always denied involvement. The Russian Foreign Ministry accused the court in November of bowing to pressure from Dutch politicians, prosecutors and the news media.

But the November convictions held that Moscow was in overall control in 2014 over the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, the separatist area of eastern Ukraine where the missile was launched. The Buk missile system came from the Russian military’s 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade, based in the city of Kursk.

The Joint Investigation Team is made up of experts from the Netherlands, Australia, Malaysia, Belgium and Ukraine. Most of the victims were Dutch. It had continued to investigate the crew of the missile system that brought down the plane and those who ordered its deployment in Ukraine.

ENTRANCE EXAMINATION

2023-2024

Temple Christian High School will hold its Entrance Examination on Saturday, February 11, 2023 at the school on Shirley Street from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon for students wishing to enter grades 7, 8, 9 and 10.

Application forms are available at the High School Office. The application fee is twenty-five dollars ($25). Application forms should be completed and returned to the school by Friday, February 10, 2023.

For further information, please call telephone number: 394-4481/394-4484.

As well as the criminal trial that was held in the Netherlands, the Dutch and Ukrainian governments are suing Russia at the European Court

of Human Rights over its alleged role in the downing of MH17.

The findings revealed Wednesday will likely strengthen the case at the human rights court

and could also be used by prosecutors at the International Criminal Court who are investigating possible war crimes in Ukraine dating back to the start of the separatist conflict.

PEOPLE walk amongst the debris at the crash site of a passenger plane near the village of Grabovo, Ukraine, July 17, 2014. An international team presented an update yesterday on its investigation into the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine. The announcement comes nearly three months after a Dutch court convicted two Russians and a Ukrainian rebel for their roles in shooting down the Boeing 777 and killing all 298 people on board.

Photo: Dmitry Lovetsky/AP

FIREFIGHTERS and rescue teams search for people in a destroyed building, in Adana, southern Turkey, yesterday. Nearly two days after the magnitude 7.8 quake struck southeastern Turkey and northern Syria, thinly stretched rescue teams work to pull more people from the rubble of thousands of buildings.

Photo: Petros Giannakouris/AP

TEMPLE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL

Gospel single seeks to uplift those who have loved and lost

By JEFFARAH GIBSON Tribune Features Writer jgibson@tribunemedia.net

CREATING music that is reflective of the times and makes an impact on people remains the goal for Bahamian gospel artist Gesner “Mr J” Dalmond, As he sets out to release his new single, he hopes the message is clear: that in spite of the pitfalls of human love, God’s love is the greatest gift to mankind.

His single “Your Love” is intended to help people who may be feeling unloved as Valentines’ Day approaches, or those who may be trying to pick themselves up from a failed love relationship to focus on the love of God, which supersedes human love.

The song, Mr J said, was inspired by his own personal experience of

managing the hurt, pain and the disappointment of a failed relationship.

“The experience of a failed relationship and the thought of how others with similar experiences have handled it was what inspired this song. Lost love is a hurt that has, in many cases, a long-lasting

ANGLICANS REJOICE IN THE RETURN OF THE DIOCESAN CLERGY RETREAT

negative impact, which has caused many to suffer from emotional and mental trauma,” he told Tribune Religion. And with Valentine’s Day right around the corner, he wanted to uplift anyone feeling sad and downtrodden.

“Feelings of loneliness

and feelings of rejection will be surging in folks. This song is to help persons to seek a kind of love that transcends all other,” he said.

“By hearing the words of this song, I would want folks to know that despite the past hurts of an unsuccessful love relationship, there is that special peace and comfort from the source of love who can direct us to the right love for us.”

Mr J said love of Jesus Christ is one of the most powerful things an individual can experience, which is why this is a topic he constantly sings about.

“Love is so powerful because love ignites, happiness, comfort, peace of mind, security, whether emotional or physical,. Love stimulates good health and makes life worth

living,” he said. He also believes that many people would be better off if they learned how to give and receive love. He said it is the answer to many of the social ills happening today.

“Love is an action word.

Therefore, love should be displayed in the good that we do to one another. Love is also firm and corrects.

This aspect of love calls for the receive to understand but love is never abusive,” he said.

As “Your Love” makes its rounds on radio, the artist is also promoting his next single, “Too Much Man Dead”.

The release of the two tracks at the start of the year means that 2023 is already shaping up to be a busy one for Mr J.

“By the will of the Lord,

my itinerary will be taking me to Eleuthera for homecoming in April and back in Eleuthera in May for Gospel Fest, which is an annual gospel event hosted by my management company Christ Like Productions,” he said.

“By the will of the Lord, I’ll be in Orlando this March for Youth Alive, which will be hosted by BFM Orlando branch.

In a few weeks, Mr J and a number of gospel and secular artists will be visiting various communities throughout Nassau with an anti-crime campaign called “Too Much Man Dead”.

He said there will also be an anti-crime music compilation CD featuring various artists from around the Caribbean, Jamaica and the UK that will be tied to this campaign.

LIFE CHANGERS MINISTRIES ‘OVERWHELMED’ BY THE POSITIVE COMMUNITY RESPONSE TO OUTREACH EVENT

By FELICITY DARVILLE

WHEN Bishop Valen-

tino Williams and the Life Changers Ministries International family decided to host a special event to give back to the community, they couldn’t imagine the overwhelming response they would receive, and how many lives would be touched in the process.

The mission was two-fold - to give away groceries and essential items to those in need, and to provide some free healthcare services to everyone in the community. Hence, the Life Changers Community Health Fair & Grocery Giveaway was held on Saturday, January 28, from 12 noon to 4pm.

CLERGY members from Anglican churches throughout the country are currently gathered for a memorable retreat in Cat Island.

Father Chester Burton, Anglican church rector, said from as far north as Freeport, Grand Bahama, to the southern islands of the Turks and Caicos, members boarded a Western Air flight this Monday afternoon, to assemble with their Diocesan Bishop, Laish Z Boyd Sr.

The annual retreat, which is often held during the month of February, Father Burton said, is back in full swing after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Clerics were ecstatic for this time together. The Diocese of the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands selected the idyllic and culturally rich isle of Cat Island. It is time for reflection, relaxation and redirection before the lengthy, gruelling Lenten season, which begins on Ash Wednesday, February 22,” said Father Burton.

He said the weeklong retreat is being held under the theme: “Grace Upon Grace - Empowering the Mystery: Living as if we Believe”, taken from John 1 vs 16, and Ephesians 3 vs 7 to 13.

The retreat conductor is the Right Rev Santosh Murray, a former cleric who once served in Inagua, Abaco, and at St Margaret, Kemp Road. He presently serves in the Diocese of Easton, Maryland, Washington, DC, at the Episcopal Church. Rev Murray can boast of wealth of knowledge after having worked in a multipoint parish on Abaco and then serving the parishioners of St Margaret on Kemp Road.

Both Bishops Boyd and Murray led the delegation to the picturesque and luxurious resort of the Fountain Bay Hotel, New Bight, said Father Burton. As the Clergy Retreat nears its culmination at the end of this week, Father Burton said many clerics are now spiritually armed and empowered for the long Lenten journey that lies ahead.

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

Hundreds of people turned up to the Bacardi Road Park, which is the community where the church is located. People from surrounding communities also came out to participate.

In addition to the grocery giveaway, the church offered a number of other gifts to those gathered, including gas vouchers, haircut and barber gift certificates, massage gift certificates, nutritional supplements, and fresh fruit bags.

The healthcare services offered included: fiveminute consultations with registered doctors; fiveminute consultations with registered pharmacists from Nassau Agencies, a dietician to help residents reframe their diet for health (with the assistance of the Sandiland’s Rehabilitation Centre Assistant Registrar), and classes in CPR and BLS (Basic Life Support) conducted by the Bahamas Red Cross.

Community members were thankful to have such critical services brought directly into their neighbourhood, and these services remained oversubscribed throughout the day.

Several health professionals also participated by making five-minute presentations - nuggets of critical information to help residents with their health journey. Speakers included: Ms Dormeus of the Bahamas Red Cross; M Cambridge, dietician on the importance of healthy eating; Dr Shakera Jones on the importance of immunisation; Psychiatric Nurse Pamela Williams on taking care of your mental health, and Pastor Perez Albury on spiritual wellness.

Bishop Williams explains why his church took on the initiative: “January is a difficult month for many people, and many people are still unemployed. we wanted to do our part to help those who are economically challenged.”

“We decided to put on a health fair to relieve some of the burden on our healthcare system,” he added.

“We brought the hospital to the people. With people being sensitive to their health status, they can make the necessary adjustments before their situation worsens and further weighs down the healthcare system.”

Bishop Williams and his wife, Pastor Cleopatra Williams, plan to work with their church family to make this an annual event. Next year, they say, will be bigger and better. Plans are already underway to include vision, dental and chiropractor services next year, and to double the grocery giveaway.

MR J is aiming to help the community with his music and his anti-crime efforts.

LIFE Changers Ministries church members welcome hundreds of people to their fair.

MINISTER Valentino Williams.

SPORTS

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

A clean sweep

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

It was a clean sweep of all four divisional titles in the Bahamas Association of Independent Secondary Schools 2023 best-of-three basketball championships that ended last night at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium.

But none was more sweeter than the senior boys’ division where the Charles W Saunders prevailed over their fellow Baptist school, Jordan Prince Williams Falcons, 54-50, to win their school’s first ever basketball title.

No one was more elated about the victory than head coach Dario Burrows, who had to catch his breath after the exhausting finish.

“This is the first one. It feels awesome. I’m just thankful to God that my players made me proud,” he said.

“We’re going to celebrate this. All of the alumnus are out tonight, so we are going to enjoy this.”

The Cougars sealed the deal with a big offensive rebound and a reverse put back from their big centre Nakero Brown-Cox to push the lead to the final margin after it was tied twice in the fourth quarter at 44-44 and 50-50.

“We knew that Jordan Prince Will and coach (Ernest) Saunders were going to make the adjustments after game one,” Burrows said. “We knew it was going to be a fight, but

our boys came prepared to put up a fight. We were prepared. We won.”

Brown-Cox finished with 10 points and a couple of blocked shots to go along with some clutch rebounds. Raymone Woods, however, led the Cougars attack with a game high 22 points. Marcian Pickstock had nine, Treymon Wright seven and both Tenaj Strachan and Romial Strachan helped out with three.

For the Falcons, Kamari Minnis had 19, E Lockhart had 12, J Kemp nine and both Bradley Cadet and Tray Clarke had four apiece.

Both teams played to an 11-11 tie at the end of the first quarter, but Charles W Saunders pulled away from a slim 17-16 to go up 27-21 at the half.

The Falcons made a run coming within one, 37-36, but the Cougars pulled away from a 41-38 at the end of the third.

Senior girls Big Red Machine 53, Giants 21: St Augustine’s College was a little too much for St John’s to handle as they got a balanced scoring rampage for their senior girls’ sweep.

“My team performed well. I knew we were going to win the game. It’s not just being cocky. We just did what we had to do

and after our junior girls and our junior boys lost, we knew we had to bring at least one home,” said SAC head coach Anastacia Sands-Moultrie. Her daughter, Antonicia Moultrie, had a game high 19, Dior-Rae Scott finished with 16, Teanna Gibson had eight and Arianna Gomez added six for the Big Red Machine.

Buddy,

page 16

BAISS SOCCER RETURNS AFTER THREE YEARS

THE Bahamas Association of Independent Secondary Schools has returned to soccer play after a three-year hiatus with action in the junior girls’ division with the Comets of Queen’s College hosting the Big Red Machine from St Augustine’s College.

This matchup will pit veteran coaches against each other as they try to rebuild their respective schools soccer programmes and continue the rivalry from track and field.

The senior boys’ division also saw games on Monday with St Augustine’s College hosting Queen’s College. SAC has a rising squad with eyes set on winning the BAISS title while QC will be seeking to rebuild from their 2016 glory years.

In the second senior boys’ matchup, soccer powerhouse Lyford Cay School will take on Aquinas College in the west.

“We have three seniors graduating and they wanted to go out with a bang today.

“So we are going to celebrate our seniors, who were with us from grade seven,” explained SandsMoultrie of Moultrie, Terelle Dawkins and Christian Smith.

SEE PAGE 16

SCOTIABANK HOPS ON AS GOLD ELITE CARIFTA SPONSOR

Analysis: LeBron has defied odds, with no drop-off in sight

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer

LEBRON James is 38 years old. He is in Season 20 of his NBA career. He is, by conventional basketballplaying standards, ancient.

History says his decline should have started already.

Except it hasn’t. Not even close. And count that as just another example of what sets James apart from so many other greats, so many other superstars of their sport who were good enough for long enough to climb atop some lists in the record books.

The NBA’s new scoring leader — he caught Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on Tuesday night, one Los Angeles Lakers great taking the record from another — is still one of the very best

in the game. He is talking about playing two more years, three more years, maybe more. He could raise the scoring-record bar so high by the time he retires that it would be, at best, highly unrealistic for anyone to catch him.

“I know I’m still playing at a high level. ... I’ve been able to do some incredible things in this league,” James said after he scored 38 points on the record-setting night to lift his career total to 38,390 — three more than Abdul-Jabbar, whose reign atop the NBA scoring list ended after almost 39 years. “And hopefully I can do some more incredible things before I’m done.”

The unfortunate part about most longevity records is this: Young athletes don’t set them. By

COVID-19 really did a number on soccer so much so that traditional soccer schools experienced problems fielding team for this years competition. With a strong legacy of soccer, it was a surprise to see schools like St. John’s College and Temple Christian not fielding a team in the senior boys division. With that said, the BAISS division continues to grow with the addition of Windsor Academy fielding teams this season. Welcome Windsor.

The soccer convener is Yiorgo Coyle of St. Andrews School.

Here’s a look at the teams entered in the four divisions:

Junior girls – Queen’s College, St Augustine’s College, Windsor Academy, St Andrew’s and St Anne’s.

Junior boys – St Augustine’s College, Queen’s College, St John’s College, St Anne’s, Windsor Academy, Aquinas College and Lyford Cat School.

Senior girls – Queen’s College, St Augustine’s College, St John’s College, Kingsway Academy, St Anne’s School, Lyford Cay School and St Andrew’s School.

Senior boys – St Augustine’s College, Queen’s College, Lyford Cay School, St Andrew’s School, St Anne’s School, Aquinas College, Kingsway Academy and Windsor Academy.

Brittney Griner absent from USA camp, but keeping in touch

By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer

BRITTNEY Griner texted her good friend Diana Taurasi on Tuesday asking how the USA Basketball training camp was going.

Griner was back in Arizona, choosing to skip the camp in Minnesota so she can be with her wife and recover from her time in a Russian jail. She returned to the United States in December after a dramatic prisoner swap.

“She wants to be a part of this like no one else,” Taurasi said.

“So, she’ll get there eventually. She’ll find her footing.”

Taurasi said the two talk regularly now that Griner is home in Phoenix. They work out together as well as chat and text each other often.

“We’ve been on the court together working out. We’ve sat down and talked for hours,” Taurasi said. “It’s been really nice to reconnect. It’s good to see her smile. Good to give her a hug. Know she was alive and still had the ability to be thankful and happy.”

There was a time during Griner’s 10-month ordeal in Russia that the 40-year-old Taurasi wasn’t sure she’d ever see her

SEE

design, they’re usually broken by athletes who are at or near the end of their career.

Take Pete Rose, for example. Rose got his

KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR, left, hands the ball to Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James after James surpassed him to become the NBA’s all-time leading scorer during the second half against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday, February 7, 2023, in Los Angeles.

(AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

WITH a deposit of $100,000 into the account of the Local Organising Committee, Scotiabank became a gold elite sponsor of the 50th CARIFTA Games. The investment was made yesterday in front of the bank’s main branch in Rawson Square on Bay Street. SEE THE FULL STORY ON PAGE 19

JORDAN Prince Williams Falcons junior boys’ championship team.

KINGSWAY Academy Saints junior girls’ championship team.

‘Buddy’ Hield scores 29 but Heat hold off sliding Pacers 116-111

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer

MIAMI (AP) — Bam

Adebayo tied his season high with 38 points, Jimmy Butler added 25 and the Miami Heat held off the Indiana Pacers 116-111 last night.

Gabe Vincent had 17, Tyler Herro scored 15 and Caleb Martin finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Heat, who snapped a two-game slide.

Buddy Hield scored 29 points for Indiana, which has lost 13 of its last 15 games. Myles Turner had 23 points and 11 rebounds, while T.J. McConnell scored 18.

Tyrese Haliburton had 10 assists for the Pacers, but was held to 11 points — 32 fewer than he scored at Miami on December 23.

His 3-pointer with 10.5 seconds left got Indiana within three, but Adebayo sealed it with a pair of free throws.

The Heat and Pacers split the four-game regular-season series. And just like the first three, this one went right down to the end. The combined score of the season series entering Wednesday was Pacers 294, Heat 294; now, it’s Heat 408, Pacers 405, none of the games this season decided by more than five points.

It was Adebayo’s 10th 30-point game of the

season, matching the total of all other Heat players combined — Butler has five, Herro four and Max Strus has one. Adebayo was 12 of 16 from the field, 14 of 14 from the foul line.

He’s the sixth player in Heat history to have at least 10 games of 30 or more in the same season, and nobody had done it since LeBron James — now the NBA’s career scoring leader — had 31 such games for Miami in 2013-14. Miami had a season-low nine bench points.

TIP-INS

Pacers: Including playoffs, it was the 1,996th NBA game for coach Rick Carlisle — 1,796 as a coach, and

200 more he got into as a player. No. 2,000 would be next Wednesday against Chicago, Indiana’s final game before the All-Star break. ... Andrew Nembhard scored 10 for Indiana.

Heat: PG Kyle Lowry missed his second consecutive game with left knee soreness, and the Heat expect him to miss at least two more. Jazz Chisholm of the Miami Marlins was among those in the crowd, getting a Heat jersey as a gift during a third-quarter timeout – followed by a hug and handshake from Hield, a fellow Bahamian.

BIG HALF

McConnell had 16 points in the first half, the

second-most points he’s ever had by halftime in his career. He had 25 by halftime against Milwaukee January 16, finishing that game with a career-high 29 — one of only four 20-point games for him in the NBA. Including playoffs, McConnell averaged 5.5 points in 33 games against Miami.

MUST-SEE TV

As would be expected, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra

was tuned in Tuesday night to watch James pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and become the leading scorer in NBA history.

“I rarely stay up for those late games — but that was must-see TV,” Spoelstra said.

“It’s so historic for him to be able to do that. And for Kareem to be in the building, that’s one of those amazing NBA moments.”

ELLIANNE HIGGS EARNS 1ST PLACE IN LASER FLEET

THE KPMG Youth

Winter Olympics, now in its ninth year, kicked off the Bahamas National Sailing School’s 2023 season with the first major junior sailing regatta over the weekend in Montagu Bay.

The popular event attracted sailors between the ages of 8-18 from New Providence and the Family Islands.

This year, more than 60 sailors from the Nassau Sailing Club, the Harbour Island Sailing Club and the Eleuthera Sailing Academy participated.

This event, which is usually held in February each year, often presents challenging weather conditions and this year was no exception. High winds, torrential downpours and lightning on Saturday gave the race committee no alternative but to limit the day’s sailing to just one race for the Optimists Championship, Sunfish and Laser fleets, while the less experienced green fleet Optimists stayed ashore.

Brighter conditions followed on Sunday, but the 18-20 knots of heavy wind, gusting much higher, again left the green fleeters and

most of the Sunfish without a chance to sail. The Lasers and Optimist Championship sailors packed in 3 and 5 fast paced races respectively. It was truly a battle of the fittest out on the water, with numerous capsizes and equipment issues that caused several participants to retire early.

Of the 23 strong Optimists, national champion, Patrick Tomlinson of Lyford Cay Sailing//Royal Nassau Sailing Club, was victorious. Eliza Denning also of Lyford Cay/Royal Nassau Sailing Club was placed second and Finley McKinney Lambert of

Eleuthera Sailing Academy was third.

In the laser fleet of 11 boats, Ellianne Higgs of The Royal Nassau Sailing Club stole the show with a first place finish in every race.

Joshua Weech of The Nassau Yacht Club/Bahamas National Sailing School was second and Craig Ferguson, Nassau Yacht Club/ Bahamas National Sailing School, placed third.

In the Sunfish group, Johannes Maritz of The Royal Nassau Sailing Club was the only participant to sail on both days and was the clear winner. Delano

YOUNG sailors compete in the KPMG Youth Winter Olympics to kick off the Bahamas National Sailing School’s 2023 season. It was the first major junior sailing regatta over the weekend in Montagu Bay.

Davis and Steve Cash, both of The Bahamas National Sailing School, finished in second and third respectively. It was certainly a championship that will be well remembered by all who took part.

Thanks go out to the race committee volunteers who had a challenging job this

weekend and, aside from running the races, had serious safety issues to keep in mind.

The Bahamas National Sailing School wish to give their thanks to the title sponsor, KPMG, for their continued support of junior sailing.

Nico Maritz of KPMG not only volunteered

his time out on the race courses, but also presented the trophies to the top three finishers in each fleet at an awards ceremony at The Nassau Yacht Club on Sunday afternoon. For more information about junior sailing please visit the National sailing School website: www.bahsailingschool.org

EAGLES COUNT ON PASS RUSH TO HARASS MAHOMES IN SUPER BOWL

By JOSH DUBOW AP Pro Football Writer

PHOENIX (AP) — The defensive philosophy that has carried the Philadelphia Eagles to the Super Bowl is relatively simple.

A deep rotation of defensive linemen provides constant pressure that makes opposing quarterbacks uncomfortable and often leads to them ending on the ground.

“It’s always a race to the quarterback,” defensive tackle Fletcher Cox said. “We all look at it every week that we have to earn the right to rush the quarterback and guys buy into that.”

Few teams have gotten to the quarterback more frequently this season than the Eagles, who are closing in on the NFL’s most prolific season ever when it comes to sacks. That will be the formula the Eagles (16-3) will hope to replicate on Sunday against Patrick

BAISS BASKETBALL

FROM PAGE 15

On a personal note, SandsMoultrie said she was pleased with the way Moultrie stepped up and became the leader of the team. She noted that basketball is her passion and she played to the best of her ability.

Reyanah Green did all she could, leading the Giants with 15. Keira Poitier had three and both Lebronique Demeritte and Camille Stevenz had two each, but obviously it wasn’t enough.

After being held scoreless, Green got a rebound and drove the length of the court to complete a three-point play with 44 seconds for an 8-3 deficit. Demeritte canned a jumper just before Green came back and hit a

Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs (16-3).

“Any time you play these great quarterbacks, you got to affect them because you can’t have them out here playing 7 on 7,” defensive end Brandon Graham said. “The line definitely has to affect anything that goes on with the play. I know that we’ve got a great D-line, but we got to prove it each and every week. I’m excited because we do got a task we got to achieve going against Mahomes.”

That won’t be easy even with Mahomes on a gimpy ankle. He was the best quarterback in the league this season at avoiding sacks, with only 10.2% of pressures turning into sacks, according to Pro Football Focus.

Mahomes was sacked three times in his previous Super Bowl appearance two years ago against Tampa Bay when he was constantly on the run behind a banged-up line.

free throw to trim it to 8-6 to end the first quarter. St John’s opened the second on the first basket to tie at 8-8. But it was all SAC the rest of the period as they surged ahead 22-14 with Scott leading the attack as Moultrie picked up two quick fouls.

After a short break, Moultrie regained her composure as she settled down and controlled their potent offensive attack in the third as they raced out to a 41-19 tear.

Junior Boys Falcons 44, Big Red Machine

41: Jordan Prince Williams made this one look so easy from the start but had to hold on for their lives to complete their junior boys’ sweep.

They opened a 14-0 lead before SAC got on the scoreboard and eventually trailed 17-4 at the initial break. As the Big Red

Kansas City has bolstered the line since then, but Mahomes knows it will be difficult against the Eagles. “They’re on like a historic sack rate and the way they’re able to get to the quarterback,” Mahomes said. “So everybody

Machine picked up their intensity, the Falcons stayed ahead by 12, 24-12 at the half.

SAC kept their momentum up, using a zone defence to cut the deficit to 33-27 at the end of the third after forcing the Falcons to make some critical turnovers.

Mid-way in the fourth, SAC came within one, 33-32, much to the delight of their fans. But the Falcons quickly silenced the noise and went on a 7-2 spurt to extend their lead to 41-34. SAC made one last gallant effort in the last minute and-a-half, but the Falcons pulled away with it in the winding seconds.

Michael Munnings exploded for a game high 24 points, including nine when it counted the most in the fourth to pace the Falcons. Broc Glinton had 12 and Condie Smith had 10 points.

“The team played good. We executed our game plan,”

knows that everything starts up front. It’ll be a great challenge for our offensive line to try to do what they can.”

Philadelphia followed up a regular season with 70 sacks — tied for the third-most ever — with eight more so far in the playoffs. The 78 sacks combined in the regular season and playoffs have been topped only by the Chicago’s Monsters of the Midway with 82 sacks in 1984 and 80 the next season.

While the Eagles benefitted from a 17th regular-season game, their rate of sacks is also quite impressive. They have sacked the quarterback on 11.5% of dropbacks this season for the highest rate in a season since 1989, when the Vikings did it on 12.2% of drop-backs. “Being a part of a pass rush where everybody gets the chance to eat, that’s the best thing,” star defensive end Haason Reddick said. “It causes

Maycock said. “It was a good game. We played a little sluggish in the second half and they were able to cut down the lead, but we were able to execute our game plan. We were very confident that we would win it tonight.”

For the Big Red Machine, Nathan Rolle had 21 points.

Micah Moxey and Justiz Butler both contributed six and Quincy Rolle added four.

Junior Girls Saints 25, Big Red Machine 12:

It was a repeat performance for Kingsway Academy, who behind the rhythmic sound of the junkanoo music, swept aside SAC in grand style.

While Andica Curtis got away from the double team to score seven points, Dashante Sears got loose for eight to lead the charge, all coming in the second half as Kingsway Academy pulled away from a 6-6 tie at mid-point.

no problems. Everybody gets their chance. Everybody gets the chance to get their stats up. Everybody gets their chance to make an impact at the end of the day. When you have a D-line like we have, it’s crazy. All it takes is for one person to make a play and then the energy amongst everybody is just rolling.”

Philadelphia spreads the wealth around with a record four players reaching double digits in the regular season: Reddick (16), Javon Hargrave (11), Josh Sweat (11) and Graham (11).

But Reddick is the one who sets the tone. He had 1 1/2 sacks on the opening drive of a divisional round win against the Giants and then the strip-sack that injured San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy’s elbow on the first drive in the NFC championship game.

It’s been part of a fairytale season for Reddick that will end where he started his NFL career.

Michayla Joseph also contributed eight.

Saints’ head coach Tamaro Butler said it was exactly what they anticipated, even though they were held to just a field goal from Joseph in the first quarter.

“It feels good. This is what we set out to do at the beginning of the year. We accomplished our goal,” he said. “Yet again, I know I’ve been saying this a lot, but we started off slow. We picked up our game and we came out with the victory.”

Kingsway Academy forced SAC to commit too many turnovers and when they needed it, they took advantage on the boards, both offensively and defensively.

The Big Red Machine, outscored 9-2 in the third and 10-4 in the fourth, got six points from Zion Carey, four from Azarria Marshall and another two from Alexis Roberts.

PACERS guard Buddy Hield (24) takes a shot against Miami Heat forward Caleb Martin (16) during the first half last night in Miami.

(AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

ELLIANNE HIGGS, right, took first place in the Laser Fleet.

EAGLES linebacker Haason Reddick stretches during Super Bowl team practice yesterday in Tempe, Arizona. (AP Photo/Matt York)

LeBron James makes NBA history on star-filled night in Los Angeles

By GREG BEACHAM AP Sports Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP)

— Bronny James stepped over to his dad’s locker and played the phone video he had taken of Tuesday night’s biggest moment.

The NBA’s new scoring king tipped his head back in a rich, full-throated laugh when the audio revealed Bronny had anticipated that the historic basket would come on a fadeaway jumper.

“That’s tough, that’s tough,” LeBron James said. “That’s funny.”

For James, the greatest cost of nearly two decades in the NBA is the family time he misses. When he reached arguably the greatest individual basketball milestone of all by passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s career scoring record, James’ mother, wife and three children all witnessed the coronation.

They were right at courtside in a building packed with stars and roaring fans who rose in waves of anticipation every time he touched the ball. James has been thriving under formidable pressure his entire adult life, and this was nothing the King couldn’t handle — although the man who says he almost never cries had tears in his

eyes after he made history with that nimble step-back shot in the third quarter. “I had a moment when it happened, and I embraced that moment,” James said afterward. “Seeing my family and friends, the people that’s been around me since I started this journey to the NBA, definitely very emotional right there. Just a kid from a small town in Ohio. I had a moment there, but I don’t think it’s really hit me, what just transpired.” When James surpassed Abdul-Jabbar’s record 38,387 points, a crowd that had roared for his every basket went the craziest of all. “A lot of people wanted me to go to the skyhook to break the record, or one of the signature dunks,” James said with a grin. “But the fadeaway is a signature play as well.”

The Los Angeles crowd screamed and stomped with every point while James steadily surged toward the mark held since April 1984 by Abdul-Jabbar, who watched the game from a baseline seat near the Los Angeles bench.

With four championship rings and nearly every other honour available to a basketball player, the 38-year-old James closed in on this next moment in history with the confidence of

a player who has been even better than anyone could have expected two decades ago when the kid from Akron, Ohio, reached the NBA.

“The expectations were all the way out to Pluto, and he went ahead and created his own galaxy,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said before his team’s 133-130 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The crowd was in its seats far earlier than normal in Los Angeles, and James got numerous ovations before the Lakers and Thunder got rolling.

Lakers fans turned out in droves for the chance to see a once-in-a-generation achievement, with tickets going for thousands on the secondary market.

The moment was irresistible to fans like Aaron Sanchez, one of the hundreds of jersey-clad Lakers faithful patiently taking turns posing in front of the statue of Abdul-Jabbar that stands on the plaza in front of the Lakers’ downtown arena. Sanchez shares a set of two season tickets with a few friends and family, and he already had the seats

for Tuesday’s game months before anyone could predict the magic day.

He turned down a friend’s offer of $200 to swap the Thunder seats, but he knew he would be out of luck if James waited until tonight to break the record, since those tickets belong to a different friend.

“It’s basketball history, and that’s what the Lakers are all about,” Sanchez said.

“LeBron is already one of the greatest Lakers ever, and getting this record in a Lakers uniform just makes it more certain. He was our leader after Kobe (Bryant)

died, and he’s our leader now.”

Indeed, James has already earned a special place in Lakers fans’ hearts over his five seasons in purple and gold. Several months before he won the franchise’s 17th championship in the Florida pandemic bubble, he became a part of Lakers lore with his inspirational words and steady leadership in the wake of Bryant’s death in a helicopter crash. Inside the building, dozens of celebrities gathered to witness history: Denzel Washington, Jay-Z, Bad Bunny, LL Cool J, Usher, Andy Garcia and countless others. Dozens of basketball greats also turned out, including Lakers heroes James Worthy and Bob McAdoo along with Dwyane Wade. The biggest star in the crowd was Abdul-Jabbar, who has verbally sparred with James in public over issues not directly related to basketball. The Lakers legend known to all as Cap wasn’t about to miss history, and he shared a warm hug with James before ceremonially exchanging a basketball in a simple, touching gesture. Although the final score chafed him, James said he’ll never forget this stop on his two-decade journey.

Who has next for James’ scoring record: Luka? Tatum? Anyone?

By BRIAN MAHONEY AP Basketball Writer

JAMES Harden averaged 36 points a few seasons ago. Devin Booker once scored 70 in one game.

There are many more players doing much more scoring now than when LeBron James began his NBA career in 2003-04. Tracy McGrady led the league with 28 points per game that season, a mark that nine players would currently be surpassing.

With the faster pace of play and the plethora of 3-pointers, there are plenty of chances for players to pile up the points. But a look at Harden shows how hard it will be for even an elite scorer to keep doing it long enough to challenge wherever the scoring mark is when James finally retires.

He averaged 36.1 points in 2019-20 and 34.3 the next season. Maintain those kinds of numbers for 75 games a season and a player would be flirting with 40,000 points in a mere 15 years — though that still probably wouldn’t be enough to reach where James will put the record that’s now 38,390.

But then circumstances changed. A trade first to Brooklyn and then

LEBRON

FROM PAGE 15

4,192nd career hit — a record-breaker, the one where he passed Ty Cobb’s official total (some say Rose actually had the record a few hits earlier, but the recognised number for Cobb by Major League Baseball remains 4,191 hits) — on September 11, 1985. At that moment, when Rose lined that hit off Eric Show, he was a .304 career hitter. But after the record-setter, he batted .225 for the remainder of his career. In fairness, he was 44 and 45 years old during that stint of batting .225.

He slowed down. It happens to everyone. Well, almost everyone.

“I think about the wear and tear on LeBron’s body and the lack of sleep and the 3 1/2 games a week,

Philadelphia meant having to share shots with fellow All-Stars, and a severe hamstring injury robbed Harden of much of his explosiveness. He hasn’t even averaged 25 points since and now doesn’t get much past 20.

Count Booker among those who think James will never be caught.

“You might be able to do it for five seasons or 10, but 20 seasons at what he’s done, I don’t think it will ever be done again,” the Phoenix Suns star said.

Still, perhaps there are some players who will have a chance. Maybe it’s Luka Doncic, who like James has lived up to the hype that followed him into the NBA. Or maybe it’s Victor Wembanyama, who will try to do the same starting next season.

Maybe it’s a player who hasn’t even been born yet, just as James wasn’t when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar set the previous record in 1984.

Here’s a look at some of the possibilities:

— Jayson Tatum, Boston: Tatum went toe-to-toe with James in the 2018 Eastern Conference finals, when he finished with more points in a postseason than any rookie other than AbdulJabbar. The All-NBA forward averaged better

season after season, how he takes care of himself,”

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said. “I hope the young players pay attention to that. Anyone who’s ever been around LeBron, he’s always working on his body.”

Tiger Woods got 79 wins in 295 PGA Tour starts between 1996 and 2013, a ridiculously high-for-golf 27% winning rate. Since then, after off-the-course issues and a slew of injuries, Woods has won three times in 62 starts. He has tied Sam Snead for the alltime wins record on tour with 82. No one would dare doubt that Woods can find a way to get one more win and claim the record outright, but few would also say that it should be considered likely.

Wayne Gretzky caught Gordie Howe for the alltime NHL goals record and was still every bit The

than 26 points the last two seasons, is at nearly 31 per game this one and doesn’t turn 25 until next month. Keep up this season’s average for the next 13 and he could be toe-to-toe with James again.

— Luka Doncic, Dallas. Playing professionally in Spain before coming to the US had him ready to make a quick splash in the NBA, and he’s averaged better

Great One — his moniker for decades now. But over his last five seasons after setting the record, Gretzky’s production predictably dipped a bit.

He averaged 0.25 goals and 1.1 points per game over those last five seasons, at the ages of 34 through 38. Before that, he averaged 0.71 goals and 2.2 points per game.

Even Abdul-Jabbar, after catching Wilt Chamberlain in 1984, saw his numbers decrease. Before the record, Abdul-Jabbar averaged 27.0 points. Afterward, 17.7 points.

“Kareem was a great player his entire career, even after setting the record,” said Pat Riley, his coach with the Lakers and now the president of the Miami Heat. “The record didn’t change anything for him.”

There are two notable exceptions to the notion

than 27 points in four of his five seasons. Doncic already has racked up more than 8,500 points and he won’t even turn 24 until the end of this month. He’s far more than just a scorer, perhaps more likely to surpass Russell Westbrook’s career record for triple-doubles.

— Devin Booker, Phoenix. Booker can get as hot as anybody in the league, as he showed when he scored

that says player production almost always must drop off after setting records.

James is the first one. Kobe Bryant averaged 17.6 points in his 20th season, a record for anyone who played that deep into their NBA career. It won’t be a record much longer. James is averaging 30 per game in his 20th season. The other exception is Tom Brady.

The recently retired seven-time Super Bowl champion never slowed down after catching Drew Brees for three of the biggest records a quarterback can have — most completions, most touchdowns and most yards.

Consider what Brady did this season, his 23rd, at 45 years old: 4,694 yards, 25 touchdown passes, a career-best and league-high 490 completions, a careerbest and league-high 733 attempts. It might not have been his best year, but it

70 points in Boston in 2017 at 20 years old, or when he had three straight with 40 or more in December. The guard just turned 26 a few months ago and already has 12,000 points. Do a little better than his 27.1 points per game this season for 12 more years and he could make things interesting.

— Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee. Perhaps he never really

was still incredibly prolific. “There’s always going to be a part that wants to play and a part of me that feels like I can play,” Brady said on his “Let’s Go!” podcast when explaining his retirement decision. “I think there’s just a decision to know that it’s the right time. I think for me, it’s going to end at some point and now’s the time.”

Brady never dropped off. Ever. So far, we can say the same about James. He continues to defy Father Time.

And now, sit back and watch how many more points he adds to this total. Barring injury, 40,000 points will happen. If he plays two or three more full seasons, 42,000 or 43,000 isn’t unthinkable. “He’s going to extend this record even further,” AbdulJabbar told TNT after the game Tuesday night. “And it’ll be interesting to see how far it goes.”

had a chance at the career scoring record after managing just 525 points (6.8 per game) as a rookie.

But few players work harder to improve than the Greek Freak, who may have replaced James as the NBA’s most unstoppable athletic force.

He just turned 28 and is in his fourth straight season averaging better than 28 points. Do that for the next 10 years and he could be up near the 38,000-point range.

— Victor Wembanyama, France.

The 19-year-old forward will arrive in the NBA in June as the most hyped prospect since James 20 years earlier. At 7-foot-3 but with shooting range and ballhandling skills of a player much smaller, he has numerous ways to score. And he’d need to do plenty of it to catch James.

GRINER FROM PAGE 15

again. “Every single day we suffered and hoped she’d be back and not until I saw her did I really believe it. And just to see her smile, just to see her free, was really emotional for everyone,” Taurasi said. “And we knew, at the same time, the minute she got into that plane and we got to Phoenix, there was going to be a whole new set of challenges, a whole new reality, a whole new way of living life for BG.”

Griner has said she’ll play for Phoenix again this season, although she’s still an unsigned free agent. She hasn’t talked about her international future and potentially playing for the US at the Olympics next year in Paris. She has helped the US win two gold medals at the Olympics already.

USA Basketball coach Cheryl Reeve said Monday that she hasn’t talked to Griner yet, but the organisation made it clear that she could take all the time she needed to decide if she wanted to play for the US again.

“We’ve missed her and when she’s ready we’ll welcome her back,” Reeve said.

LAKERS forward LeBron James celebrates after scoring to pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA’s all-time leading scorer against the Oklahoma City Thunder on February 7 in Los Angeles.

(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

LAKERS forward LeBron James, left, scores to pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA’s all-time leading scorer as Thunder guard Josh Giddey, centre, and forward Kenrich Williams defend during the second half on Tuesday night in Los Angeles.

(AP Photo/Mark J Terrill)

FOURTEEN COACHES, ADMINISTRATORS TAKE ADVANTAGE OF SPORTS VISITOR PROGRAMME

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribiunemedia.net

A TOTAL of 14 coaches and administrators - seven males and seven femaleswill be the recipients of a fully funded exchange to benefit the development of Bahamian youths in track and field through the United States Embassy’s Bridging the Gap Sports Visitor Programme.

The US Embassy in Nassau made the official announcement yesterday in the Harry C Moore Library at the University of the Bahamas in the presence of executives of the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations and UB Mingoes Athletic Department.

Lance Posey, the acting deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy, made the announcement, along with Suemayah Abu-Douleh, the US Embassy’s public relations officer.

The programme will afford the coaches and administrators the opportunity to participate in a two-week sports visitor programme in Los Angeles, California and Eugene, Oregon, from May 6-20. It’s the first of its kind and

while it’s geared for track and field coaches and administrators throughout Grand Bahama and the Family Islands, the participants will engage with American peers and sports practitioners, and participate in clinics and sessions on leadership, team building and inclusion in equity in sports.

According to Posey, the exchange is aimed at providing support for Bahamian coaches and administrators in their efforts to create and or build upon their Family Island track and field programmes and, at the same time, provide opportunities to increase girls’ participation in sports.

Posey, who started out in track and field but leaned more to basketball because of his height, said they are bridging several gaps, including gender issues by encouraging and targeting girls’ participation and the access gap where they are targeting as many Family Islands as possible.

“We chose track and field because it is a sport that is unique. You don’t need lots and lots of equipment and it’s something that the resources on the Family Islands can be able to meet the track and field needs,” Posey said. “It is also one of

the most popular sports in the Bahamas.”

Additionally, Posey said they want to also bridge the gap in education because there are a lot of opportunities for student-athletes, although all don’t make it to college.

“We have many students, who benefit through sports to get them through school, to get them to universities in the states, so that is also another opportunity that

we are happy to be able to provide,” he pointed out.

Posey said the US Embassy will be hosting an in-person US College Fair in October. But he said they want to concentrate on this initial exchange programme to allow the coaches and administrators to come back to the Bahamas and utilise the skills they learn from the programme.

Montez Williams, the under secretary at the

Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, said as a representative of the government of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, he thanked the US Embassy for providing the programme.

“I know that it will yield such great results,” he said. “We have eager, excited, energetic young people and most of them are females, by the way, who are ready to take advantage of this programme.

“So, ours would be the task to identify the seven female and seven male coaches and administrators. I know our doors will be knocked on because we have so many people working in the trenches, especially on the Family Islands as this programme is aimed at reaching so many in the Family Islands.” He promised that they will get the best representation from the Bahamas, which will be a collaboration between the US Embassy, the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture and the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations.

As they promote equity in the process, Abu-Douleh said the programme is open to all interested coaches and administrators, who have at least two years’ experience coaching or developing a programme in their community.

Accorduing to AbuDouleh, interested persons must be Bahamians, vaccinated for COVID-19 and are involved in youth and sporting programmes in their communities, preferably in track and field.

The application process is now open to the public and will be closed on Wednesday, February 22.

Rashford, Sancho answer taunts with goals to get Manchester United point

By JAMES ROBSON AP Soccer Writer

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — In the face of cruel taunts from Leeds fans, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho responded in style.

Both players scored in a rousing second-half fightback as Manchester United came from behind

yesterday to salvage a 2-2 draw in the Premier League.

“You let your country down,” chanted the away section at Old Trafford, in reference to the United forwards missing penalties in England’s Euro 2020 final shootout defeat to Italy.

But by the end of the game Rashford had scored his 20th goal of the season

in all competitions to start United’s comeback and Sancho had equalised to mark his return to the first team.

Sancho’s contribution felt particularly significant after he was given time off earlier this season in a bid to kick-start his career.

“I am really happy he is in the right direction, I hope he can keep his momentum going and I am sure it will strengthen him and motivate him even more,” said United manager Erik ten Hag.

“He is a brilliant footballer and if he can invest in the right levels he can be outstanding.”

Both Rashford and Sancho have taken time to get back on track after the disappointment of the Euros, which saw them subjected to racist abuse afterward, along with Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka, who also missed a penalty.

Rashford, however, is producing possibly the finest form of his career this season, while Saka is a key part of Arsenal’s title challenge. It has not been the same story for Sancho, who has struggled for consistency since joining United from Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2021.

That led to Ten Hag giving him a break until he came on as a substitute against Nottingham Forest last week in what was his first appearance since October. With United looking

like suffering a shock defeat to relegation-fighting Leeds after going 2-0 down early in the second half, Sancho was given his chance to make an impact and didn’t disappoint with a clinical finish to salvage a draw.

“I wanted a different dynamic. In that moment we weren’t in the game. Luckily it succeeded because we scored two goals,” Ten Hag said. “He’s all the way back. We know he’s a magnificent player. I think consistently he can have a big impact.”

As rousing as United’s fightback was, it couldn’t shake the sense that its title ambitions had been dealt a blow.

Leeds, without a man-

ager following the firing of Jesse Marsch on Monday and facing a desperate fight for survival, came close to consigning United to a first home defeat in the league since the opening day of the season after goals from Wilfried Gnonto after just 55 seconds and Raphael Varane’s own-goal early in the second half.

Rashford and Sancho rescued a point, but United remains seven off leader Arsenal, having played two games more.

“Mixed feelings. Of course in the end we were happy to win a point — but we dropped two points,” Ten Hag said. “It’s a very

bad start, unacceptable, especially in a derby you have to be ready to battle and take responsibility. We didn’t do that.”

FULHAM GOES

THROUGH

Fulham booked its place in the fifth round of the FA Cup with a 3-2 win in its replay with Sunderland.

Harry Wilson and Andreas Pereira put the Premier League club in control, but Jack Clarke pulled one back for the home team.

Layvin Kurzawa made it 3-1 before Jewison Bennette struck for second-tier Sunderland.

Fulham faces Leeds in the next round.

MAN United’s Jadon Sancho celebrates after scoring his sides second goal during the English Premier League soccer match against Leeds United at Old Trafford in Manchester, England, yesterday. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

MONTEZ WILLIAMS, under secretary in the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, speaks as Lance Posey looks on.

Photos by Austin Fernander/Tribune Staff

MONTEZ WILLIAMS, under secretary in the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, shakes hands with Lance Posey, acting deputy chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Nassau.

LANCE POSEY, the acting deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in Nassau, made the official announcement yesterday in the Harry C Moore Library at the University of the Bahamas.

SCOTIABANK BAHAMAS SPONSORS 50TH CARIFTA GAMES

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

WITH a deposit of $100,000 into the account of the Local Organising Committee, Scotiabank became a gold elite sponsor of the 50th CARIFTA Games.

The investment was made yesterday in front of the bank’s main branch in Rawson Square on Bay Street.

Roger Archer, the vice president and district head of the bank, expressed their delight in becoming a sponsor of the games, scheduled for April 7-11 at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium during the country’s celebrations of its 50th Independence.

Archer, accompanied by a host of their management team from their corporate head office, said the region is the birthplace of some of the best athletes and so many of the regional stars who have gotten their birth to becoming world champions.

Having been established in the Caribbean for over 130 years, the last 65 of which they were right here in the Bahamas, Archer said they have always been a part of the fabric of athletics in the Bahamas and they will continue to support the expansion of sports within the Caribbean.

“We do this because we believe in the unifying, restorative and transformational power of sports and its ability to change lives for the better,” Archer said.

“Track and field creates a future for our athletes and their families.

“Our athletes place our country on the world stage and has shown that as a region, we are powerful together.”

In supporting the athletes in the region and their support in gaining their prominence on the world stage, they are proud to present their gold elite sponsorship of the 2023 CARIFTA Games with

their donation of $100,000 in cash to the LOC.

Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowleg said they are so delighted that Scotiabank is easing the pressure of the Bahamas Government spending so much money by making their generous donation to the LOC.

“CARIFTA is the birthplace of some of the greatest athletes that came out of the region, the Americas and the Caribbean,” Bowleg said.

“And so, with you having branches in the Caribbean region and in the Americas, the brand of Scotiabank will be well accepted and seen at the CARIFTA Games and there is no better place to have it than at the 50th CARIFTA Games.”

LOC chairman Lynden Maycock welcomed on board Scotiabank, who have been integrated into numerous sporting events in the Bahamas, including the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ National High Schools Track and Field Championships.

“Their support of the games shows their shared belief that the development of our youth is the security of our future,” Maycock stressed.

“The CARIFTA Games is a platform for young athletes throughout the Caribbean and the Americas that can be seen as their development as future track and field athletes.”

Mike Sands, president of the North American, Central American and Caribbean (NACAC), under whose jurisdiction the games fall under, said when BAAA president Drumeco Archer, along with Bowleg made their presentation last year at the games in Jamaica, they awarded to the Bahamas on the basis that they felt very confident that the BAAA could secure the sponsorship to host the games.

“Scotiabank is no stranger to sponsoring sporting

events, particularly track and field,” said Sands, who served previously as president of the BAAA when Scotiabank sponsored the National High School Championships. “It’s that kind of corporate support that Scotiabank has shown over the years, so it’s indeed a pleasure of mine to say on behalf of NACAC, thank you.

“I’m sure your long dollars will go a long way and we look forward to your continued support in events to come.”

Drumeco Archer said that while they are appreciative of their support of the LOC, he said it’s his hope that the dollars will continue to roll on and support the BAAA in their various activities that will follow

after the games. “You have made a clarion call, not only to the banking industry, but to the entire corporate industry that we need to do more and to give more to our sports and to our young people,” he said. “This message could not have been louder when Scotiabank would have taken on the commercial bank partnership relationship with the

local organising committee and Scotiabank is named as the only Canadian bank that will have regional presence as well as local presence for any bank in Canada.” Archer thanked Scotiabank for their generosity, not just to the BAAA, but by extension NACAC and World Athletics, the governing body for the sports in the world.